MSCI’s choice to retain Digital Asset Treasury Corporations (DATCOs), corresponding to MicroStrategy, in its international fairness indexes has alleviated fears of a direct forced-selling occasion.
Nonetheless, removed from settling the talk, the ruling has uncovered a deeper and more and more contentious query: whether or not an organization whose steadiness sheet is dominated by Bitcoin ought to be handled as an working enterprise or as a leveraged funding automobile masquerading as fairness.
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In an announcement launched late Tuesday, MSCI stated it will not proceed with a proposal to exclude DATCOs from the MSCI World Investable Market Indexes through the February 2026 evaluate.
MSCI confirmed Digital Asset Treasury Corporations will stay in MSCI Indexes for the Feb 2026 evaluate. A powerful final result for impartial indexing and financial actuality. Thanks to our traders and the $BTC group.
— Technique (@Technique) January 6, 2026
On the identical time, the index supplier made clear that scrutiny is much from over. MSCI stated it plans to open a broader session on “non-operating companies generally.”
On this, the supplier of world fairness indexes, analytics, and knowledge cited considerations from institutional traders that some DATCOs resemble funding funds reasonably than conventional companies.
For now, DATCOs already included in MSCI indexes will stay, offered they meet different eligibility standards. Nonetheless, MSCI imposed significant constraints.
- It won’t enhance the Variety of Shares, Overseas Inclusion Issue, or Home Inclusion Issue for these securities, and
- It can defer additions or size-segment migrations.
In sensible phrases, that freezes their index footprint and limits future passive inflows even when firms subject new fairness.
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The announcement triggered sharply divided reactions throughout markets. Technique, MicroStrategy’s company identification, welcomed the end result, as did Michael Saylor, the agency’s govt chair and former CEO.
“MSTR will remain in MSCI indexes,” Saylor articulated.
Based on MicroStrategy, this can be a robust final result for impartial indexing and financial actuality, with supporters echoing that view.
“…many big accounts were talking about a doom loop and billions of dollars of stock being sold,” said Investor Zynx, however that nearer evaluation confirmed the danger was exaggerated. “We can put this behind us and continue to build on a strong start to 2026.”
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Critics Warn MSCI Ruling Solely Postpones the MicroStrategy Reckoning
Critics, nonetheless, argue the MSCI choice merely delays a reckoning. Andy Constan described MicroStrategy as “a 1.27 times levered ETF trading at its NAV and paying 10% for its leverage.”
Constan added that the corporate “has no GAAP earnings,” “has no justification for being valued with a P/E,” and “should not have been added to NDX 100 and will never be added to the SPX or any ‘corporate’ index.”
$MSTR is now a 1.27 occasions levered ETF buying and selling at its NAV and paying 10% for its leverage. It was at all times this and was by no means something apart from this regardless of the nonsense from the foolish traders, the corporate and its founder. It has no GAAP earnings regardless of the virtually… pic.twitter.com/lA2yTZXTeJ
— Andy Constan (@dampedspring) January 6, 2026
Put plainly, Constan argues that MicroStrategy shouldn’t be a traditional firm. Moderately, it’s extra like a dangerous, leveraged Bitcoin fund, and treating it like a daily company inventory is deceptive.
Considerations have additionally intensified round Technique’s most well-liked fairness choices, significantly STRC. Analyst Novacula Occami pushed again strongly towards claims that these devices symbolize digital credit score.
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“STRC is not even credit. It is equity that is subordinate to all creditors,” with “no legal claim on any asset, including the sainted BTC,” Occami defined.
Based on Occami, the construction lacks fundamental covenants and protections usually present in most well-liked securities, making it “just equity risk.”
Even some bullish observers acknowledge that the MSCI final result is much less constructive than headline reactions recommend.
Analyst Finch famous that the restriction on share rely changes means “new issuance will no longer generate incremental passive buying from index rebalancing,” eradicating a key tailwind for shares like MSTR.
MSCI’s personal language highlights why the talk is unresolved. By highlighting considerations that DATCOs could also be predominantly investment-oriented reasonably than operational, the index supplier signifies that the classification of Bitcoin-heavy firms stays beneath evaluate.
That leaves MicroStrategy’s Bitcoin premium and its place in fairness markets intact for now, however firmly beneath the microscope.
