Strategy, previously Microstrategy, announced a $21 billion stock offering to expand its bitcoin holdings amid a significant $4.2 billion loss in Q1 2025. Despite the losses, the company highlights its bitcoin yield performance and strong liquidity position. Meanwhile, predictions for cryptocurrency ETFs show promising approval odds for assets including solana, litecoin, and XRP, as confidence grows in the market.
Strategy, formerly Microstrategy, has made headlines with a hefty $21 billion at-the-market stock offering aimed at acquiring more bitcoin (BTC), despite announcing a sizeable first-quarter net loss of $4.2 billion, which breaks down to around $16.49 per diluted share. This move signals a bold strategy to enhance its bitcoin treasury, even as it faces challenges from current market conditions.
In the financial details, Strategy’s net loss incorporates a staggering $5.9 billion unrealized loss from its bitcoin portfolio, a situation influenced by new fair value accounting rules that came into effect in 2025. Nevertheless, the company maintains a forward-looking approach as it demonstrates a commendable 13.7% year-to-date BTC yield and reports a significant $5.8 billion gain from its bitcoin holdings. Currently, Strategy boasts an impressive total of 553,555 bitcoins, acquired at an average cost of $68,459 each, and it has even adjusted its BTC yield target for 2025 from 15% to a more ambitious 25%.
In comments surrounding this stock offering, CEO Phong Le explained that raising $21 billion could allow the firm to add an additional 301,335 bitcoins to its balance sheet while also boosting the stock significantly — rising by 50% during the quarter. He remarked, “With over 70 public companies adopting a Bitcoin treasury standard globally, it’s encouraging to be leading the charge in this arena.”
Adding to the financial outlook, Strategy’s CFO Andrew Kang indicated that the recent adoption of fair value accounting has led to a rise in retained earnings by $12.7 billion. However, he conceded that the $4.2 billion loss was a result of Bitcoin’s price at the end of the quarter hitting $82,445. In the first quarter, Strategy raised an impressive $7.7 billion from various financial instruments like stock sales and notes. Furthermore, it had to increase its authorised shares of Class A common stock to a whopping 10.3 billion to aid future equity raises.
Operating expenses surged dramatically, up 1,976% year-on-year to a staggering $6 billion, largely prompted by changes in bitcoin-related accounting practices. In other areas, software revenues saw a slight decline of 3.6% to $111.1 million, although subscription services experienced a notable increase of 61.6%. Cash reserves experienced a healthy bump, rising to $60.3 million, reflecting an increase of $22.2 million since December 2024.
Looking ahead, Strategy’s financial report for Q1 2025 highlighted potential risks, emphasising that the volatility of bitcoin prices, shifts in regulations, and liquidity issues could affect their future performance. By the end of the quarter, the company held bitcoin worth $43.5 billion, with the current market value positioned at around $96,619 per bitcoin as of May 1, 2025.
Meanwhile, positive murmurs are resonating within the ETF landscape. Bloomberg Intelligence’s analysts have signalled strong optimism for U.S. spot cryptocurrency ETF approvals in 2025, particularly for solana (SOL) and litecoin (LTC), both garnering a 90% approval probability. XRP is close behind at 85%, while dogecoin (DOGE) and other assets like polkadot (DOT) and cardano (ADA) range between 75% to 80% in approval odds.
The report emphasises that all 19b-4 filings have been acknowledged by the SEC, with decisions expected from July through to December 2025. On a related note, the SEC postponed decisions on the Franklin Templeton XRP ETF and Bitwise Dogecoin ETF recently.
Analysts believe that, given the classification of these assets as commodities — many having regulated futures — the climate appears favourable for ETF approval. Further backing this prediction, predictor market Polymarket indicates a growing trend of confidence among speculators, with an 89% likelihood noted for the SOL ETF approval, reflecting similar sentiments as Bloomberg.
Litecoin and XRP have also shown boosted odds on Polymarket, both now at a 79% chance. The XRP contract has traded $65,640 in volume, while Litecoin has seen $42,181 exchanged. Cardano, whilst trailing with a 69% chance, reported high trading interest at $366,581, indicating potential investor enthusiasm despite more cautious estimates by Bloomberg at 75%. As SEC deadlines approach, investor focus will undeniably be on these assets to see how they fare compared to bitcoin and ethereum, which already have established spot ETF markets.
