Bitcoin gets fresh vote of confidence as MicroStrategy adds to holdings
Quick Take
- MicroStrategy added 7,500 bitcoin to its balance sheet in the first quarter of the year, when it saw net profit rise to $461.2 million.
- The company said that it prepaid a loan from the collapsed Silvergate Bank in March.
MicroStrategy, the software firm best known for its bet on the largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, said Monday that it added 7,500 bitcoin to its balance sheet in the first quarter of the year, bringing its total to 140,000 currently worth almost $4 billion.
"The conviction in our bitcoin strategy remains strong as the digital asset environment continues to mature," MicroStrategy CEO Phong Le said in a statement.
The company reported a net income of $461.2 million for the first quarter of the year, compared to a net loss of $130.8 million in the same quarter a year earlier and a net loss of $249.7 million in the fourth quarter of 2022. MicroStrategy attributed the gains to benefits from income taxes and a gain on debt extinguishment.
Loss from operations also improved in the quarter, coming in at $20.3 million compared to $170 million in the first quarter of 2022. Total revenues for the period increased 2.2% from the same period last year to $121.9 million.
MicroStrategy co-founder Michael Saylor posted a graph on Twitter that showed how the company had outperformed other companies and indexes since it admitted its bitcoin strategy. The company's shares were up 1.2% in post-market trading, according to TradingView.
"In #Bitcoin We Trust," Saylor wrote earlier in the day.
MicroStrategy bitcoin holdings
As of March 31, the carrying value of MicroStrategy’s 140,000 bitcoin was $2 billion, reflecting cumulative impairment losses of $2.2 billion. The company reported an average cost per bitcoin of $29,803, just slightly above the current market price of $27,898.
MicroStrategy said a wholly-owned subsidiary on March 24 voluntarily prepaid Silvergate Bank $161.0 million to fully repay a bitcoin-backed loan. Silvergate, which is being liquidated, released its security interest in the 34,619 bitcoin that had been used to collateralize the loan.
In the first quarter of 2023, MicroStrategy said it had purchased bitcoin using $179.3 million in proceeds from the sale of class A common stock offered under a 2022 sales agreement.
Bitcoin rose about 72% over the 3-month period, according to CoinGecko.
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