Michael Saylor Stands Firm Despite $8 Billion Risk to MSTR

Michael Saylor, the founder of Strategy (Nasdaq: MSTR), faces significant challenges as his company could potentially lose $8 billion if removed from the MSCI index. Despite this risk, Saylor is standing firm, arguing that Strategy is an operating company rather than a passive fund. There’s an ongoing debate about the classification of Strategy, and its future remains uncertain until the MSCI review is completed in January 2026.

Key Takeaways

MSCI Index Impact: If MSCI removes MSTR from its index, it may face $8 billion in selling pressure.
Fund vs. Operating Company: Saylor insists his firm is an operating company with a $500 million software business.
Long-Term Conviction: Saylor remains committed to Bitcoin (BTC), emphasizing the active nature of Strategy.
Active Capital Raising: Strategy raised $21 billion in 2025, indicating it operates differently from passive investment vehicles.

Strategyt MSTR

Understanding the Situation with MSTR

Michael Saylor’s Strategy (MSTR) could experience a challenging period as it awaits the MSCI index review report, set to be released in mid-January 2026. According to TD Cowen, a prominent investment bank and brokerage firm, MSTR may encounter about $8 billion in selling pressure if MSCI decides to remove it from the index. This report estimates that about $2.5 billion of MSTR's value comes from holdings within MSCI indexes, with an additional ~$5.5 billion potentially linked to other indexes following MSCI's lead.

The MSCI's review process, which became known publicly last week, initially surfaced on October 10. The global index claims that public Bitcoin treasury firms like Strategy operate more like investment funds than authentic companies, leading to their suggested exclusion from the index. Only true operating companies are eligible for inclusion.

However, TD Cowen countered this viewpoint by asserting that Strategy operates as a business, specifically highlighting its $500 million software division, even though it's a minor part of the company's total valuation. The firm pointed out, “Strategy is clearly not an investment fund,” raising the question of whether MSCI is expressing a bias against Bitcoin.

Saylor Responds to MSCI’s Concerns

In response to the potential exclusion from the MSCI index, Saylor publicly rejected the classification of Strategy as a passive entity. He stated, "Strategy is not a fund, not a trust, and not a holding company. Funds and trusts passively hold assets. No passive vehicle or holding company could do what we’re doing.”

Saylor further emphasized that the classification by the index does not define their operations, reaffirming their long-term commitment to Bitcoin. In various social media posts, he insisted that he won’t “back down,” highlighting the remarkable feat of raising $21 billion in capital only in 2025.

Strategy MSTR

Raising such an impressive amount demonstrates that Strategy operates with a level of activity and expansion that passive firms typically lack. This raises questions about how MSCI will ultimately proceed: will they reconsider their stance, or will they move forward with the delisting of MSTR in the coming year?

Meanwhile, Bitcoin [BTC] has remained steady above the $80,000 mark and even attempted to reach $90,000 on November 24. Following these developments, MSTR saw a 5% increase, reaching a value of $179.