Strive is accelerating its Bitcoin accumulation as it pursues the second-largest corporate Bitcoin treasury position.
The company has recently increased its buying pace while larger rival Strategy has added coins more gradually.
Strive’s latest purchases show how aggressively management is pursuing its year-end treasury target. However, Strategy continues to dominate the corporate Bitcoin rankings by a wide margin.
Strive disclosed on October 5 that it spent $169 million to acquire roughly 2,000 BTC. The transaction marked the company’s third-largest Bitcoin purchase.
The purchase was about six times larger than Strategy’s latest acquisition. Strategy bought 334 BTC for nearly $29 million between October 1 and October 4.
CEO Matt Cole has pushed Strive toward larger weekly Bitcoin purchases as the company tries to climb the treasury rankings. Meanwhile, Strategy’s Bitcoin growth has slowed compared with Strive’s recent accumulation pace.
Strive Bitcoin buying accelerates as strategy adds 334 BTC
Strategy disclosed its latest Bitcoin purchase through an 8-K filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The company spent $28.7 million on 334 BTC at an average price of $85,838.80.
The acquisition lifted Strategy’s Bitcoin holdings to 848,000 BTC. Its Bitcoin portfolio carries a reported cost basis of about $63.97 billion.
Strategy financed the purchase through equity sales and available cash. It raised $15.7 million by selling 92,894 MSTR shares and contributed another $13 million from U.S. dollar reserves.
However, the company directed significantly more capital toward repurchasing its STRC preferred shares. Strategy spent $73.7 million buying back 740,634 STRC shares.
That followed $102.6 million of similar repurchases during the previous week. Strategy also estimated a $20.91 billion gain on its digital asset holdings during the quarter ending September 30.
Strive has taken a different approach as it expands its Bitcoin treasury. The latest 2,000 BTC acquisition extended a series of large purchases that have accelerated its climb.
On September 21, Strive purchased 1,355 BTC for $107.7 million. The company paid an average of $79,475 per Bitcoin.
That purchase also exceeded Strategy’s acquisition during the same period. Strategy disclosed a 950 BTC purchase that day.
Strive previously added 1,800 BTC in late August. Another 469 BTC purchase later pushed its total holdings beyond 25,000 BTC.
Strive targets second place among public Bitcoin holders
Strive held 29,462 BTC as of October 5, placing it fifth among public corporate Bitcoin holders. Several companies still separate Strive from its second-place target.
Strategy remains first with 848,000 BTC. Metaplanet holds 44,000 BTC, while Tether-backed Twenty One owns 43,514 BTC. MARA holds 35,577 BTC.
Strive has publicly targeted the number two position by year-end. Reaching that level would require it to overtake MARA, Twenty One and Metaplanet.
The company has funded much of its accumulation through SATA, its Variable Rate Series A Perpetual Preferred Stock. SATA pays a daily dividend and has crossed $1 billion in notional value.
Warrant exercises linked to Strive’s common stock also generated approximately $21.2 million in gross proceeds. Including those proceeds, SATA represented 57.7% of capital raised during Strive’s September buying week.
The funding strategy has helped Strive maintain a faster Bitcoin purchasing pace. Strategy, meanwhile, continues combining equity sales and cash for acquisitions.
Strategy has also allocated substantial capital toward preferred-share repurchases and dividend obligations. Strive continues directing more of its recent financing toward expanding its Bitcoin treasury.
