Metaplanet Invades Saylor’s Home Turf. Couldn’t Japan Fund Its Bitcoin Ambitions?

The structure also leaves room to grow. Metaplanet can add up to $210 million through preferred stock within 24 months of closing. The deal should close in the fourth quarter of 2026, pending a shareholder vote and regulators in both countries.

Metaplanet CEO Simon Gerovich framed the move as expansion rather than necessity.

"We've built one of the world's largest Bitcoin treasuries from Japan. Superplanet is how we build in America, the deepest capital market in the world... It is one consolidated Bitcoin position, compounding through two listed platforms in Japan and in the U.S," read an excerpt in the announcement, which cited Gerovich.

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Could Japan Not Fund Metaplanet's Bitcoin Ambitions?

The honest answer is less dramatic. Metaplanet raised money in Tokyo for years through warrants, bonds, and stock sales. That money bought 43,000 BTC, the world's third-largest corporate stack.

However, Japan lacks one thing. It has no market for perpetual preferred stock, permanent capital backed by Bitcoin that never needs repaying.

The US market is proven and deep. MicroStrategy's STRC preferred stock raised $2.5 billion at its debut in July 2025. It pulled in another $7.5 billion this year alone, per Strategy's second-quarter results. Its preferred shares beat Bitcoin over the past year even as MSTR stock collapsed.

That is the turf Metaplanet is walking onto. Strategy holds 840,447 BTC, nearly 20 times Metaplanet's stack.

The timing is uncomfortable, though. MicroStrategy sold 1,690 Bitcoin this month to prop up STRC, which trades below its $100 face value. Preferred dividends have already cost Strategy over $1 billion. Both firms also face an MSCI index removal threat.