Metaplanet, the Tokyo-listed company known for its aggressive Bitcoin investments, added another 108.999 Bitcoin for ¥1 billion ($6.5 million). This adds to a long list of buys done by the company and has pushed its Bitcoin holdings to 748.502 BTC, which now values at approximately $45.2 million, with Bitcoin priced at about $60,420. Metaplanet, since April 2024, has gradually been increasing its treasury in Bitcoin and now it is among the companies in the top of Asia-based treasury.
Metaplanet’s Bold Bitcoin Acquisition Strategy
The firm’s investment approach with regard to Bitcoin Investment is not simply the buying of spot purchases. Metaplanet takes up a more advanced investment strategy by selling put options along with buying Bitcoins. According to Peter Chung, Head of Research at Presto Labs, this technique helps the firm earn additional yield. According to him, the strategy positions Metaplanet at a point where it would benefit even if the price of Bitcoin decreases. This makes the company unique in its market advantage. “Metaplanet’s strategy allows them to bottom-fish in case the BTC price declines, a level of sophistication not commonly seen among other companies,” Chung said.
Metaplanet bought the latest Bitcoin investment through a series of transactions that it conducted in October. The move is symptomatic of the firm’s increased confidence in this new cryptocurrency. So far, it has invested ¥6.9 billion (US$46.8 million) in Bitcoins and makes the firm one of the flagbearers in corporate Bitcoin adoption. The strategic approach by the firm mirrors that by American software company MicroStrategy, which initiated the practice of holding Bitcoin as treasury reserve assets.
Metaplanet – Asia’s Answer to MicroStrategy
Known colloquially as “Asia’s answer to MicroStrategy,” Metaplanet has made Bitcoin a part of the DNA of its corporate strategy. The irony of the story, however, is that whereas the U.S.-based company, led by Michael Saylor, was apparently buying massive volumes of Bitcoins at every available opportunity, its peer in Asia, Metaplanet, is also following suit. For both MicroStrategy and Metaplanet, Bitcoin represents an inflation hedge and protection against currency devaluation for failing Japan’s economy.
The only advantage Metaplanet has is that the yen has appreciated relatively stronger against the U.S. dollar over the past year. As long as the yen continues to appreciate, Metaplanet has been in a favorable exchange rate all along since it increased its Bitcoin reserve gradually. Such a strategic play speaks to Metaplanet’s acumen in the cryptocurrency market and, more broadly, macroeconomic trends.
The investment in Bitcoin by Metaplanet will take its place amongst the growing trend of corporations that would see the incorporation of cryptocurrency into the long-term financial strategies of such companies. One of the first companies to make a move and create a significant stir was Tesla, purchasing $1.5 billion worth of Bitcoin in early 2021 before selling some of this Bitcoin to diversify its assets. In the case of Block Inc., formerly Square, it centrally integrated Bitcoin into its investment strategy, with an initial investment in the order of $50 million in 2020 and then adding another $170 million in purchases through 2021.
A Growing Trend in Corporate Bitcoin Investment
For Metaplanet, this focus on Bitcoin has built up its treasury but has also taken quite a toll on its stock price. When the company initially announced its plan to begin purchasing Bitcoin, the stock price rose from ¥190 (US$1.32) to an all-time high of ¥1,008 (US$7.01). Since the fervour over its Bitcoin Investments has died down, the stock has cooled to around $6.40. With this drop, however, the leadership does not seem to be deterred from its Bitcoin-centric strategy. As such, it insists that Bitcoin Investments is “the most valuable thing we can do for our shareholders.”
Such is the saga of Metaplanet, which reflects how the traditional finance system is slowly getting hooked up with cryptocurrency. Their aggressive foray into Bitcoins represents a larger trend toward business absorption of digital assets in their financial strategies. Whether more firms will soon find value in Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies as stores of value can only be said when Metaplanet’s strategy could perhaps inspire other firms to explore this new financial frontier.
Until now, Metaplanet remains one of only three Asia-based public companies that join the ranks of Nexon and Meitu in actively adding Bitcoin to their treasuries. Its long-term investment in Bitcoin shows increased mainstream acceptance of digital assets and further pegs it into position as part of the backbone for corporate treasury management.
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