Vanguards $9 Billion Dive into Strategy Shares Despite Bitcoin Criticism

Vanguard, the investment firm that regards Bitcoin as an «immature speculative asset,» has emerged as the largest institutional shareholder of Strategy, as reported by Bloomberg.

The company currently holds nearly 8% of Strategy’s shares, valued at approximately $9.26 billion, which includes over 20 million securities. The largest portion consists of 5.7 million shares located within the Total Stock Market Index Fund (VITSX).

Vanguard did not intentionally select the shares of Strategy; their acquisition occurred automatically due to the firm’s inclusion in various stock market indices. Vanguard’s passive funds are required to maintain the indices’ composition, which involves purchasing the corresponding assets.

The management team at Vanguard has repeatedly expressed its skepticism towards cryptocurrency, declaring them «unsuitable» for long-term investors and opting not to include spot Bitcoin ETFs on its platform.

«We do not believe this asset belongs in a portfolio,» stated former CEO Tim Buckley.

Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas labeled the situation as ironic.

«God has a sense of humor. By choosing the path of index funds, Vanguard is obliged to own all the shares, whether they like it or not,” he explained.

Strategy’s founder, Michael Saylor, interprets this event as a «strong signal of increasing institutional support for Bitcoin,» believing it reflects the traditional financial community’s acceptance of digital gold as a reserve asset.

Strategy is recognized as the largest corporate holder of Bitcoin, presently owning 601,550 BTC.

Additionally, Japanese investment firm Metaplanet reported that a subsidiary of Fidelity Investments, National Financial Services (NFS), has become its largest shareholder with a 12.9% stake.

NFS holds 84.4 million securities of Metaplanet, valued at approximately $820 million, as stated in the announcement.

Fidelity’s brokerage division usually acts as a custodian for clients trading on its platforms.

Metaplanet CEO Simon Gerovich noted that the firm’s shareholder base «continues to evolve as global access expands.» The official statement also mentioned that the independent verification of the data with Fidelity’s subsidiary is still underway.

In light of this news, Metaplanet’s stock price fell by over 7% during the Asian trading session, according to Yahoo Finance.

Referred to as the «Asian Strategy,» the investment firm has raised over $1 billion this year to establish a corporate Bitcoin reserve. Recently, it increased its holdings to 16,352 BTC, equivalent to $1.64 billion.

Previously, the firm unveiled a plan dubbed «555 million» aimed at issuing new shares to accumulate 1% of the maximum Bitcoin supply. Metaplanet also plans to invest $5 billion in its subsidiary in the U.S. and use its reserves to acquire «profitable businesses,» including a digital bank.

In a related note, TD Cowen increased its target price for Strategy’s shares from $590 to $680.