Strategy Inc. (NASDAQ: MSTR), the largest corporate holder of Bitcoin with 847,363 BTC valued at approximately $50.3 billion, announced a structural overhaul of its capital framework on June 29, 2026. The company authorized up to $1.25 billion in Bitcoin sales, raised the STRC preferred stock div...
"We are shifting from primarily issuing capital to actively managing the company's capital structure through both issuance and repurchases, depending on market conditions." — Phong Le, CEO, Strategy Inc.
Strategy Inc. (NASDAQ: MSTR), the largest corporate holder of Bitcoin with 847,363 BTC valued at approximately $50.3 billion, announced a structural overhaul of its capital framework on June 29, 2026. The company authorized up to $1.25 billion in Bitcoin sales, raised the STRC preferred stock dividend to 12%, and initiated $2 billion in share buyback programs. The announcement came after MSTR shares fell 80% from their 52-week high, STRC preferred stock traded 26% below par value, and annual dividend obligations quadrupled to $1.2 billion.
The move marks the first formal governance mechanism for Bitcoin liquidation in Strategy's six-year accumulation history. MSTR shares rose 6% and STRC jumped 9% on the announcement.
Separately, the UK's Financial Conduct Authority published its final crypto rulebook on June 30, cutting stablecoin issuer capital requirements to 1% of tokens in circulation — half the previously proposed 2% — in a deliberate move to undercut the EU's MiCA framework and attract stablecoin issuers to British jurisdiction.
Strategy holds 847,363 BTC acquired for a total cost basis of approximately $64.1 billion, at an average price of $75,646 per coin. With Bitcoin trading near $59,400 as of June 30, the portfolio carries an unrealized loss of roughly $13.8 billion. The company's market capitalization stood at approximately $33.2 billion — well below the $50.3 billion mark-to-market value of its Bitcoin alone.
The stock's decline has been severe. MSTR traded at $82.31 on June 30, down from a 52-week high of $457.22 — a 79.7% drawdown. June alone wiped out approximately 41% of the share price, making it the company's 11th losing month in 12.
The damage is concentrated in preferred securities:
| Security | Ticker | Par/Issue Price | June Low | Decline from Par | |----------|--------|----------------|----------|-----------------| | Variable Rate Perpetual Stretch | STRC | $100.00 | $73.56 | -26.4% | | 10% Perpetual Stride | STRD | $80.00 (YTD high) | $52.00 | -35.0% | | 8% Perpetual Strike | STRK | — | $52.50 | Record low |
The preferred stock collapse has structural implications. Strategy relied on issuing preferred shares to fund Bitcoin purchases without diluting common shareholders. When preferred securities trade materially below par, the mechanism becomes uneconomic: issuing $100-par shares at $73 extracts a 27% immediate loss from the capital raise.
Annual dividend and interest obligations on preferred securities ballooned from approximately $300 million at the start of 2026 to $1.2 billion — a fourfold increase driven by aggressive issuance in late 2025 and early 2026. Cash reserves declined 38% over the same period. Dividend coverage, measured as cash reserves divided by annual obligations, compressed from over seven years to approximately 14 months.
In late May, Strategy sold 32 BTC for $2.5 million to fund STRC preferred dividend payments — the first Bitcoin sale since December 2022 and a direct contradiction of the company's long-stated "never sell" posture. The disclosure, filed on June 1, triggered immediate market repricing of the company's credibility premium.
On June 29, Strategy's board adopted the "Digital Credit Capital Framework," a five-part restructuring of the company's financial architecture:
1. BTC Monetization Program: Authorization to sell up to $1.25 billion in Bitcoin. Proceeds are restricted to three uses: increasing the USD reserve, funding preferred dividends and interest, and executing share repurchases. The program does not mandate sales but creates a formal governance trigger for them.
2. Preferred Securities Buyback ($1 billion): A repurchase program covering STRC, STRF, STRD, and STRK preferred shares. The program enables Strategy to retire deeply discounted preferred shares, reducing annual dividend obligations while acquiring securities below par value.
3. Common Stock Buyback ($1 billion): A separate repurchase authorization for Class A common shares (MSTR), designed to support the stock when it trades below the net asset value of underlying Bitcoin holdings.
4. STRC Dividend Increase: The variable rate on STRC was raised by 50 basis points to 12.00% per annum, effective July 1, 2026. This increases the annual cost of the STRC tranche but is intended to stabilize the security's market price closer to par.
5. USD Reserve Policy: The company formalized a $2.55 billion cash reserve (as of June 28), providing approximately 17.4 months of preferred dividend and interest coverage at current rates.
Executive Chairman Michael Saylor stated the framework aims to "strengthen Strategy's credit profile while maintaining bitcoin as its primary treasury reserve asset."
The market response was positive. MSTR rose 6% in pre-market trading, and STRC gained 9%. Bitcoin itself climbed above $60,000 on the announcement.
Strategy's core thesis since 2020 has been what analysts call the "NAV premium flywheel": the company issues shares at a premium to the net asset value of its Bitcoin, uses the proceeds to buy more Bitcoin, and the resulting BTC-per-share accretion justifies further premium — creating a self-reinforcing cycle.
That flywheel has reversed. As of late June, Strategy traded at an mNAV (enterprise value to Bitcoin NAV multiple) of approximately 0.76x, according to multiple trackers. At sub-1.0x mNAV, every dollar of equity issued destroys value for existing shareholders because the company receives less in proceeds than the per-share Bitcoin backing it dilutes.
The practical implication: Strategy's primary capital-raising mechanism — at-the-market equity sales — has become value-destructive. The company disclosed $24.3 billion in remaining ATM capacity as of June 28, but accessing it at current prices would further erode per-share Bitcoin exposure.
This creates a structural paradox. Strategy accumulated 847,363 BTC partly on the premise that it would never sell. The credibility of that commitment sustained the NAV premium that made cheap capital available. Once the company sold even 32 BTC for $2.5 million, the premise weakened. The resulting NAV discount then forced the company to formally authorize up to $1.25 billion in additional sales — further undermining the original commitment.
Strategy still has $26 billion in authorized ATM capacity on common shares and $1.6 billion remaining on STRF preferred issuance. Whether those channels remain viable depends on whether the Digital Credit Capital Framework stabilizes preferred pricing and restores the mNAV above 1.0x.
The Financial Conduct Authority published its final cryptoasset rulebook on June 30, establishing the UK's first comprehensive regulatory framework for crypto markets. The headline provision: stablecoin issuers will face a capital buffer requirement of 1% of tokens in circulation, half the 2% originally proposed in consultation drafts.
FCA Executive Director David Geale told journalists the reduction followed direct industry feedback: "The feedback we got (was) that we're starting a bit high." The regulator described the 1% figure as "proportionate" and designed to help UK firms compete internationally.
The move has clear strategic intent. The EU's Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA), whose transitional period expires on July 1, 2026, imposes higher capital adequacy requirements on stablecoin issuers. By setting a lower threshold, the FCA positions the UK as a more attractive jurisdiction for issuers evaluating where to domicile operations.
Additional changes in the final rulebook include:
The regulatory divergence between the UK and EU is now explicit. As Binance faces an effective lockout from EU markets with MiCA's July 1 deadline, the FCA is signaling that the UK will absorb firms seeking lighter regulatory touch. Whether the lower capital buffer adequately protects consumers in a stablecoin failure scenario remains an open question.
Strategy's Digital Credit Capital Framework represents a pragmatic retreat from absolutism. The company built a $64 billion Bitcoin position on the premise of permanent accumulation. Market conditions — specifically, a 36% decline in Bitcoin from Q1 highs, a fourfold increase in preferred obligations, and the collapse of its NAV premium — forced a recalibration. The $1.25 billion Bitcoin sale authorization, the $2 billion in buybacks, and the STRC dividend increase are attempts to stabilize a capital structure under visible stress.
The framework's success depends on whether it restores sufficient confidence to push STRC and STRD back toward par and MSTR above 1.0x mNAV. If preferred securities stabilize, Strategy retains access to its issuance channels and can resume accumulation. If they do not, the company faces a grinding drawdown of its Bitcoin reserve to meet fixed obligations — the precise outcome its original strategy was designed to avoid.
In London, the FCA's 1% capital buffer signals a broader regulatory competition for crypto market share. The UK is betting that lighter requirements will attract issuers without compromising systemic stability. That bet will be tested as the UK and EU operate under divergent frameworks starting July 1.