Michael Saylor is a billionaire Bitcoin investor who turned around the company he co-founded. micro strategythe entry of cryptocurrencies into high-risk proxies is encouraging microsoft In order to use some of the huge pile of cash to go after him.
But on Tuesday, when he presented his proposal at Microsoft’s annual shareholder meeting, shareholders said no.
In October, microsoft The National Center for Public Policy Research, a conservative think tank, told investors it plans to submit a shareholder proposal recommending that software companies’ boards consider diversifying their balance sheets with Bitcoin.
Saylor, who is now MicroStrategy’s executive chairman, has seen the company’s stock price rise nearly 500% this year as he has bought billions of dollars worth of stock. Bitcoin.
“Microsoft can’t afford to miss out on the next wave of technology, and Bitcoin is that wave,” Saylor said in a video presentation. Released with X last week. This post has been viewed over 3 million times.
In his three-minute presentation, Saylor showed that from August 2020 to November 2024, Bitcoin generated an annualized return of 62%, compared to 18% for Microsoft and 14% for the S&P 500. A graph was shown. Fixed income as an asset class decreased by 5%, the presentation said.
“You can convert cash flow, dividends, stock buybacks, debt into Bitcoin,” Saylor said. “If we did that, the stock price would go up a few hundred dollars.”
Tuesday’s virtual appearance was not the first time Saylor has pitched Microsoft, which held $78.4 billion worth of cash, equivalents and short-term investments at the end of September.
In it, Microsoft states: Proxy application In October, the company’s treasury and investment services team had previously evaluated Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies to fund the company’s operations and reduce financial risk, and said it would “inform future decisions.” We continue to monitor trends and developments related to cryptocurrencies in order to keep you informed.”
A day later, Saylor direct destination Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella talks about X.
“Hey @SatyaNadella, if you want to make the next trillion dollars for MSFT shareholders, give me a call,” Saylor wrote.
The proposal failed to receive support from a majority of voting shareholders, with Microsoft recommending that the proposal be rejected. Proxy advisory firms Glass Lewis and Institutional Shareholder Services also proposed no vote.
Microsoft’s finance chief Amy Hood, responding to shareholder questions at Tuesday’s general meeting, said the company began accepting cryptocurrencies for customer payments in 2014. “We continue to think about the evolution of cryptocurrencies,” she said.
Microsoft stock is up about 19% so far this year, well below MicroStrategy.
But Saylor directly ties his company, currently valued at about $83 billion, to the fate of Bitcoin. In mid-2020, the company, which was in the mid-sized software business, plan The company has started investing in Bitcoin, revealing in its earnings conference that it will spend $250 million over the next 12 months in “one or more alternative assets,” which could include digital currencies such as Bitcoin. did. MicroStrategy’s market capitalization at the time was approximately $1.1 billion.
As of December 8, MicroStrategy and its subsidiaries collectively owned approximately 423,650 Bitcoinwas acquired for a total of approximately $26.5 billion. With Bitcoin trading at $95,000, these holdings are worth more than $41.3 billion.
MicroStrategy has been selling stock and raising debt to finance its Bitcoin purchases. company said On November 21, the company announced that it had completed a $3 billion convertible debt sale “for the acquisition of additional Bitcoin and for general corporate purposes.”
According to reports, Saylor’s net worth has ballooned to $9.1 billion. forbesThis is primarily due to MicroStrategy’s ownership.
clock: Michael Saylor talks MicroStrategy and Bitcoin
