Public companies have accumulated more than 1 million bitcoins, which is 5.1% of the total emission volume
Corporate adoption of Bitcoin treasury has reached a major milestone, surpassing 1 million bitcoins, as more companies tout Bitcoin's potential to strengthen their balance sheets.
BitcoinTreasuries.NET confirmed the achievement on Thursday, recording several additional purchases that brought the total to 1,000,698 bitcoins, worth more than $111 billion.
While Bitcoin miners like MARA Holdings have been leaders in accumulating Bitcoin, Michael Saylor's Strategy became the first public company to adopt a Bitcoin strategy in August 2020, paving the way for many of the 184 public companies that hold Bitcoin today.
Saylor's company holds the largest amount of Bitcoin, 636,505 BTC, while MARA Holdings is a strong second with 52,477 BTC after mining 705 BTC in August.
However, several new bitcoin treasury companies are closing in on the lead, including Jack Mallers' XXI and Bitcoin Standard Treasury Company, which now hold 43,514 BTC and 30,021 BTC, respectively.
Cryptocurrency exchange Bullish and Japanese investment firm Metaplanet hold 24,000 and 20,000 BTC, respectively, while Riot Platforms, Trump Media & Technology Group Corp, CleanSpark and Coinbase round out the top ten.
Source: BitcoinTreasuries.NET
The rapid buying of bitcoin by public companies and exchange-traded funds has caused a demand shock this cycle, and many believe it is the main catalyst for bitcoin's price to reach a new all-time high of $124,450 last month.
More and more public companies are announcing Bitcoin accumulation strategies every week. With only 5.2% of Bitcoin's fixed supply yet to enter circulation, a supply shock could be triggered by further adoption in the coming years.
For example, Metaplanet and Semler Scientific aim to accumulate 210,000 and 105,000 BTC by the end of 2027, which is 10 and 20 times their current supply.
Bitcoin Accumulation Strategies Under Fire in Bear Market
Strategy was one of the few Bitcoin accumulation firms to maintain its confidence through the 2022 bear market, which saw Bitcoin miners sell 58,770 BTC — down from 3,500 a year earlier — and the FTX crash sent Bitcoin crashing to a 2022 low of $15,740.
Saylor even said he was willing to wait out Bitcoin's $0 crash amid a wave of criticism from publications like Fortune that questioned the sustainability of his company's “wild experiment.”
However, when Strategy came out on the other side, it likely sparked a second wave of Bitcoin adoption, including from Metaplanet and Semler Scientific, whose CEOs said they were zombie companies before adopting Bitcoin.
Wall Street Tools Drive Corporate Bitcoin Adoption
Like Strategy, many of these companies have implemented a variety of financial instruments, such as equity offerings and debt financing through senior convertible notes, to increase their bitcoin holdings and create shareholder value based on the price of bitcoin per share.
XXI and Bitcoin Standard Treasury Company are among the companies that have been launched as special purpose acquisition companies to create Bitcoin treasuries and provide investors with a faster and more flexible way to raise Bitcoin than through an initial public offering.
Corporate adoption of Bitcoin is also happening around the world. 64 companies are in the US, 34 in Canada, 11 in the UK and Hong Kong, and have also popped up in countries like Mexico, South Africa, and Bahrain. Public companies aren’t even the largest holders of Bitcoin.
Cryptocurrency exchanges and ETF issuers are the only entities that hold more Bitcoin than public companies, with 1.62 million BTC. Governments and private companies hold 526,363 BTC and 295,015 BTC, respectively.
Another 242,866 BTC are locked in crypto protocols, and the remaining 16.2 million BTC are in the hands of individuals – or at least those with access to their private keys.
Source: cryptonews.net
