Michael Saylor discloses MicroStrategy bought 850 BTC in January

MicroStrategy founder Michael Saylor disclosed that the company bought an additional 850 Bitcoins (BTC) in January. The purchases took ownership in the cryptocurrency to 190,000, or a total cost of $5.93 billion as of February 5, 2024.

According to its Q4 2023 results, MicroStrategy bought 31,755 Bitcoins since the end of Q3. The Bitcoins were acquired at an average price of $39,411, equivalent to $1.25 billion.

Bitcoin purchases helped MicroStrategy to return to profit, posting a net income of $89 million in Q4, compared to a loss of $249.7 million in the comparable quarter of 2022. The profit was boosted by the tax benefit of holding the cryptocurrency.

BTC purchases aligned with market sentiment

Although this is not the first time MicroStrategy has shown interest in adding more Bitcoin to its portfolio, the January purchases align with favourable market sentiment. The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved the first spot Bitcoin ETFs.

The move is expected to attract more institutional investors who have a chance to get direct exposure to the world's largest cryptocurrency. Analysts also believe the approval endorses Bitcoin despite the regulator showing less enthusiasm for spot products and only doing so after legal battles.

Meanwhile, the price of Bitcoin (BTC) rose in anticipation of the spot ETFs before cooling off after approval and newer market issues. The concerns included reports that FTX had dumped $1 billion of its shares in Grayscale Bitcoin Trust.
BTC price has since stabilised above $40,000. However, the purchases by MicroStrategy are a mark of confidence by the biggest holder of the cryptocurrency among listed entities. MicroStrategy has bought Bitcoins for each of the quarters in 2022 and 2023.