Michael Saylor: Wall Street Wants Cash Over Bitcoin for STRC
Strategy had to use a dollar reserve and buybacks to get STRC back toward par. For credit investors, cash mattered more than the Bitcoin backing.
Key Takeaways
- Michael Saylor admits that Bitcoin backing alone was not enough to keep STRC around the intended $100.
- Strategy bought back about $1.5 billion of STRC and added a dollar reserve to support the price.
- Saylor says credit investors would rather see cash than just Bitcoin, and is considering a daily dividend for STRC.
Michael Saylor has acknowledged that Bitcoin alone was not enough to keep Strategy’s perpetual preferred stock STRC at the intended $100 (€89). According to the executive chairman, credit investors wanted to see a cash buffer first before they bought in. STRC’s price earlier this summer fell below par and later dropped to around $75 (€67), after which Strategy stepped in with a dollar reserve and a share buyback program.
Cash Beat Bitcoin
STRC pays an annual dividend of 12% and is structured as an investment product with a target price of $100 (€89). Even so, the Bitcoin backing was not enough for some buyers. Saylor said at ParaFi Investor Day that credit investors would rather see three years of dollars than 30 years of Bitcoin.
According to him, Strategy bought back about $1.5 billion of STRC. That brought the price back to within a few cents of par. The company now holds about three and a half years of dividend payments in cash, according to Saylor. He called that a lesson in how digital credit works in practice: not just with Bitcoin, but with a mix of capital and cash.
What Strategy Is Doing Differently Now
Saylor also said Strategy may want to start paying STRC’s dividend daily, if shareholders agree. He also expects STRC could eventually trade 400 to 500 basis points above the risk-free rate, although it is still lower than that now. In recent weeks, Strategy has spent more on buybacks than on new Bitcoin purchases.
That shift fits a broader preference for cash among many investors. A 2026 survey showed that 54% of investors see cash as a safe haven in uncertain times. For products like STRC, that can matter because the market is not only looking at Bitcoin, but also at the issuer’s direct ability to pay.
Why This Matters
For European crypto followers, this shows that Bitcoin backing is not automatically enough for income products. Even a company that strongly brands itself around Bitcoin sometimes has to use extra dollar reserves to win back the trust of credit investors. That makes the debate around digital credit broader than just the price of Bitcoin.
