Microsoft’s shareholders have voted against a proposed Bitcoin investment strategy, despite growing institutional adoption and BTC’s recent price surge.
Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT), the global technology leader co-founded by controversial billionaire Bill Gates, has decided not to invest in Bitcoin BTC $66 356 24h volatility: 6.0% Market cap: $1.32 T Vol. 24h: $162.00 B . On Tuesday, December 10, 2024, Microsoft shareholders turned down a proposal dubbed Assessment of Investing in Bitcoin, which was presented by the National Center for Public Policy Research.
The Microsoft shareholders dismissed the plan to invest 1 percent of its total assets in Bitcoin to hedge against fiat devaluation and global inflation. The Microsoft shareholders voted in line with Gates’ opinion on crypto assets, who previously noted that digital assets like Bitcoin provide no valuable output and contribute nothing to society.
According to Gates, cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin pose a danger to smaller investors who cannot survive potentially devastating losses. Consequently, Gates does not hold any crypto assets, not even Bitcoin, despite the approval of spot BTC ETFs.
Following today’s shareholders voting, MSFT shares slipped around 1 percent to trade about $442 on Tuesday, during the mid-New York session. According to Michael Saylor, the founder of MicroStrategy Inc. (NASDAQ: MSTR), Microsoft has lost over $200 billion in capital during the past five years through paying investors dividends and stock buybacks instead of adopting a Bitcoin strategy.
Moreover, MSTR shares have surged over 20x since the adoption of Bitcoin strategy in 2020. Amid the changing global financial landscape, Microsoft risks facing headwinds in the coming decades for failing to change with the market needs, especially when more nation-states led by the United States are considering implementing a strategic Bitcoin reserve.
Market Impact of Microsoft’s Decision on Bitcoin
Following the announcement, Bitcoin price slipped around 1 percent earlier today to retest a support level of around $94,316, before rebounding above $96k at the time of this writing. As a result, more than $31 million, mostly involving long traders, was liquidated in the past four hours leading to this publication.
The Bitcoin industry, with nearly half Microsoft’s market cap, is expected to thrive in the long haul, fueled by institutional investors. As Coinspeaker reported, the US spot BTC ETFs, led by BlackRock’s IBIT, have accelerated Bitcoin’s adoption rate since the re-election of President-elect Donald Trump.
Bitcoin price recently rallied above $100k amid heightened futures Open Interest (OI) and noted demand from whale investors. According to market data from Coinglass, Bitcoin’s OI recently rallied above $66 billion as the overall supply of BTC on centralized exchanges dipped below 2.26 for the first time in a couple of years.
Consequently, Bitcoin’s valuation is expected to eventually overtake Gold’s, majorly due to the fixed supply amid rising demand from institutional investors. Ultimately, Microsoft could be compelled to adopt digital assets to remain competitive in the tech industry.
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