Strategy hits back at MSCI's 5-ratio screen targeting bitcoin treasuries

MSCI's 5-ratio screen would cut Strategy, Metaplanet and Yellow Cake from global indexes, drawing a sharp rebuke from the largest bitcoin treasury firm.

Strategy rejected MSCI's 5-ratio screen that would cut bitcoin treasury firms from global indexes, as BTC slipped to $62,600.

"Digital assets are assets. Index providers should measure markets, not decide which assets companies are allowed to own," Strategy said on X. "MSCI's proposal puts it out of step with regulators, markets, and its own customers. Bitcoin doesn't need MSCI. Neither does Strategy."

The consultation, opened this month, targets "non-operating companies" broadly rather than digital asset holders specifically. A core screen first checks whether operating assets exceed 50 percent of total assets; companies that fail move to an exclusion test using five financial ratios — operating asset intensity, expense intensity, cash flow, fair value intensity and capital dependence. Failing four of five makes a company ineligible. Applied to May 2026 data, the screen would delete Strategy, Metaplanet and uranium holder Yellow Cake from the MSCI ACWI IMI.

MSCI has invited feedback through Sept. 30, with results due Oct. 16. Any changes would take effect no earlier than the November 2026 index review. Index-tracking funds worth trillions of dollars would be forced to adjust holdings, and the outcome could set a precedent for how index providers treat the wave of public companies adopting digital assets as treasury strategy.

A second attempt after October's deferred proposal

The new consultation replaces an earlier plan, opened in October 2025, that targeted "digital asset treasury" firms specifically — those holding 50 percent or more of assets in bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies. That proposal named 39 companies, triggered crypto market volatility and was ultimately deferred after industry backlash.

Strategy filed a formal objection in December 2025, arguing it is an operating company, not an investment fund or passive bitcoin vehicle, pointing to its software business, active treasury operations and bitcoin-backed credit instruments. It described the 50 percent threshold as arbitrary.

The company has accumulated 840,447 BTC, worth $53.18 billion, since 2020, making it the largest publicly listed bitcoin holder, according to Bitcoin Treasuries data. Tokyo-listed Metaplanet has snapped up 43,000 BTC, worth more than $2 billion. Three additional companies, including Ethereum treasury firm SharpLink, would land on a new public watchlist under the May 2026 simulation, failing the latest filing check only.

MSTR traded 4.3 percent lower on Friday as bitcoin dipped to $62,600, with the broader crypto market under pressure.

The stakes extend beyond the three named companies. MSCI's Global Investable Market Indexes underpin trillions of dollars in passive funds, and a deletion would force index-tracking vehicles to sell holdings regardless of fundamentals. The outcome also carries a structural signal: if index providers treat bitcoin treasuries as non-operating assets, public companies weighing a similar strategy face a new cost — potential exclusion from the benchmarks that define institutional investability.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.