As bitcoin wobbles, all eyes are on Strategy . The company, which is the largest public treasury holder of bitcoin, wields considerable power to kneecap the asset’s price if it liquidates some of its holdings. But the firm is unlikely to have to sell its bitcoin if it can keep its enterprise value to cryptocurrency holdings ratio above a key level, according to JPMorgan. Strategy should keep the ratio of its enterprise value — or the summation of its market capitalization, debts, preferreds and equity dividends — to bitcoin holdings above 1.0 to avoid a forced sale of the digital assets on its balance sheet, JPMorgan analysts said Wednesday in a note to clients. The company’s ratio stood at 1.13 as of Wednesday, according to the note. And that in turn, could stem the recent pressure in bitcoin that’s troubled financial markets this month. “If this ratio stays above 1.0 and MicroStrategy can eventually avoid selling bitcoins, markets will likely be reassured and the worst for bitcoin prices will likely be behind us,” JPMorgan analyst Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou wrote. Strategy stock has cratered, with shares down roughly 42% over the past three months amid a broader crypto market downturn. Its plunge into the red has stoked investors’ fears that Strategy might sell some of its tokens, putting even more downward pressure on bitcoin. The largest crypto by market capitalization has struggled lately, dipping below $85,000 on Monday to its lowest level since March — off more than 30% from its all time high just north of $126,000 hit in early October. Bitcoin has rebounded to about $92,600 as of writing time, although it remains down slightly over the year-to-date, leading investors to wring their hands over the token’s trajectory. BTC.CM= MSTR 3M mountain Bitcoin vs. Strategy, 3 months Adding to traders’ jitters, Strategy has already reduced the size of its bitcoin buys. The firm purchased 9,062 bitcoins last month, or far fewer than the 134,480 tokens it added to its balance sheet during the same month a year prior. And, Morgan Stanley Capital International is reportedly considering excluding Strategy from its indices next year — a move that could lead to outflows of as much as $8.8 billion, according to J.P. Morgan. To be sure, analysts noted that Strategy has created a $1.4 billion reserve fund for future dividend and interest payments, which could help the firm avoid forced selling if bitcoin plunges further into the red.
