Is Strategy Playing Puppet Master with Bitcoin's Price? Here's What Analysts Are Saying

Bitcoin's price surges 9% as Strategy ramps up $1.34 billion in purchases -- but is it really moving the market?

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May 12, 2025
Summary
  • Strategy’s aggressive Bitcoin buys spark debate over market influence as Cantor Fitzgerald launches its own crypto play.
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Strategy (MSTR, Financial) is ramping up its Bitcoin buying spree, snapping up $1.34 billion worth of Bitcoin from May 5 to May 11 — a week that saw Bitcoin's price rise by 9%. Gustavo Gala, an analyst at Monness, Crespi, Hardt & Co., flagged the timing of the purchases, suggesting Strategy's activity could be adding fuel to the price moves. But not everyone's convinced. VanEck's Matthew Sigel argues that Strategy's Bitcoin buys are too small and sporadic to move the market consistently, pointing out they only represent around 8% of weekly volume.

Strategy's aggressive buying is part of a broader $84 billion capital-raising blitz, following a record first-quarter loss driven by a new accounting rule that values its Bitcoin holdings at market prices. The company, now a de facto Bitcoin proxy, has increasingly relied on convertible offerings and preferred share sales to fund its buying binge. Yet, the firm isn't the only player in the Bitcoin proxy game. With over 30 publicly listed companies now emulating Strategy's Bitcoin acquisition strategy, competition is heating up in the corporate crypto space.

Cantor Fitzgerald is the latest to jump in, teaming up with Tether Holdings SA and SoftBank Group (SFBQF, Financial) to launch Twenty One Capital, a new digital asset venture aiming to become a next-gen Bitcoin “pure play.” Positioned as a Bitcoin-focused fund, the venture plans to raise capital for digital asset investments, echoing Strategy's playbook while potentially setting the stage for further Bitcoin-linked issuance. But as Gala notes, the market may soon start questioning how much Bitcoin-backed debt and equity is sustainable.

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