Metaplanet Increases Bitcoin Holdings, Boosts Share Price

According to Cointelegraph, Japanese investment firm Metaplanet has expanded its Bitcoin holdings, resulting in a significant rise in its share price on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. On September 10, Metaplanet announced the purchase of 38.46 Bitcoin (BTC) for $2.1 million (300 million Japanese yen), bringing its total Bitcoin holdings to 398.8 BTC, valued at approximately $23 million. This marks the firm's tenth Bitcoin acquisition since its initial purchase on April 23, as per Bitcoin Treasuries data. Despite a 13.3% decline in the total value of its Bitcoin investment, with the cryptocurrency currently trading at $57,520, Metaplanet's share price has surged by 480% since it revealed its Bitcoin investment strategy in early April, according to MarketWatch data. The firm now holds the 27th-largest Bitcoin stash among corporations globally and the third-largest in Asia. In May, Metaplanet announced plans to utilize a comprehensive range of capital market instruments to enhance its Bitcoin reserves, mirroring the strategy employed by MicroStrategy. This plan was put into action on August 8 when the firm secured a $6.8 million (1 billion Japanese yen) loan to purchase additional Bitcoin. Metaplanet CEO Simon Gerovich elaborated on the company's Bitcoin strategy at a Bitcoin Conference in July, stating that the goal is to hedge against Japan's increasing debt burden and the rapidly depreciating Japanese yen. Gerovich emphasized Bitcoin's status as a premier monetary asset and expressed the firm's commitment to accumulating as much Bitcoin as possible over time. He also credited MicroStrategy's Michael Saylor for leading the way in corporate Bitcoin adoption, noting that Metaplanet was considered a 'zombie' company before its Bitcoin investments.