During a CNBC interview on Monday, Michael Saylor, the executive chairman of business intelligence firm MicroStrategy, said that he believes Bitcoin (BTC) has become the world’s most popular investment asset.
While explaining why he thinks that is the case, Saylor noted that there was a decade’s worth of accumulated demand for Bitcoin that is now being satisfied with the launch of BTC spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
BTC Spot ETFs Driving Surge In Demand For Bitcoin Which Is 10x More Than The Supply
Mainstream investors are gaining access to the leading cryptocurrency through the ETFs. According to the MicroStrategy co-founder, this accessibility has been what’s driving the surge in capital to Bitcoin.
“It’s novel, it’s digital, it’s global, it’s unique,” opined Saylor before adding that Bitcoin is in demand right now because it is “uncorrelated” to traditional risk assets as it has no exposure to “any country, currency, company, quarterly result, product cycle, not to weather, not to war, not to an employee base or supply chain,” making it a natural addition to a responsible investors’ portfolio.
Speaking on the launch of spot Bitcoin ETFs, Saylor noted that there was initially a rebalancing as people moved capital between the futures market, miners, MicroStrategy, and the ETFs.
He believes that Bitcoin has “found its footing” following the rebalancing as people are starting to realize that there is 10 times as much demand for the crypto asset coming in through the ETFs as there is supply from miners, who are the token’s natural sellers.
Similar to Saylor’s views, James Butterfill, head of research at crypto investment group CoinShares, noted that there are now continued inflows into the spot Bitcoin ETFs after a disappointing period following their listing in the US.
The ETFs recorded a whopping $4.6 billion in volume on the first day of trading on January 11, 2024.
MicroStrategy Is Now A Bitcoin Development Company
Saylor also mentioned plans to rebrand MicroStrategy as a Bitcoin development company. The move reflects the firm’s plans to acquire more BTC while supporting the expansion of the Bitcoin network.
The former CEO of the cloud-based services company said the rebranding aligns with its direction, citing the success of its BTC-centric investment strategy and MicroStrategy’s unique status as the world’s largest public company holder of Bitcoin.
It is estimated that MicroStrategy holds 190,000 BTC worth $9.44 billion at the current price.
Saylor claims that MicroStratey’s investment model offers greater flexibility than any traditional investment trust. It enables the company to develop software, generate cash flow, leverage the capital market, accumulate Bitcoin for its shareholders, and cater to the Bitcoin network.
Since the end of Q3 2023, MicroStrategy has added 31,775 BTC to its treasury. The latest acquisition was the largest quarterly Bitcoin holding addition made by the firm in three years and the 13th consecutive quarter of increasing its holdings.
Bitcoin Breaks Past $50,000 For The First Time In Over Two Years
Meanwhile, Bitcoin managed to break through the $50,000 mark on Monday for the first time since late 2021. BTC is trading at double its price from a year ago and has seen a 15% rise in value since the turn of the year.
At the time of writing, Bitcoin (BTC) is trading at $49,591 – down 0.8% in the last 24 hours.