Strategy CEO says company to resume bitcoin accumulation this year, stresses net buying stance

Strategy said it will resume accumulating bitcoin within this year. Doubts have grown after it sold some of its bitcoin holdings, but the company said it still has a clear net-buying stance.

Cointelegraph reported on Aug. 11 that CEO Phong Le (퐁 레) disclosed plans for additional purchases this year in an interview with Fox Business.

Le said Strategy has bought about 175,000 BTC so far this year and sold about 7,000 bitcoin. He said its purchases were about 25 times larger than its sales and stressed the company remains a large net buyer of bitcoin. "We will buy more bitcoin during the rest of this year," he said.

Strategy currently holds more than 840,000 BTC. It has sold bitcoin four times since May, with the most recent sale totaling 1,690 BTC. The company used proceeds from recent sales for preferred stock dividends, share buybacks and to build up dollar reserves.

That has fueled views in the market that Strategy may have moved away from its long-held stance of "never selling." It has become apparent that while it pursues a strategy of expanding bitcoin holdings, it must also consider its obligations to common and preferred shareholders as a listed company.

Le also said Strategy has risen from the world’s No. 2 bitcoin-holding company to No. 1. He also pointed to the fact that the recent sales were limited relative to its total holdings.