- Strategy uses Wall Street tools to acquire over 580K BTC, now worth $63.5B.
- Ki Young Ju calls the model a liquidity-driven “capital markets hack.”
- Saylor rejects public proof-of-reserves, favors audits and explores ZK-proof solutions.
CryptoQuant CEO Ki Young Ju has publicly referred to Michael Saylor’s method of acquiring Bitcoin through traditional financial instruments as a “hack” of U.S. capital markets. The comment, posted on X, followed Strategy Inc.’s (formerly MicroStrategy) latest Bitcoin purchase.
The company added 4,020 BTC to its balance sheet at a cost of $427.1 million. This brings its total holdings to 580,250 BTC, which is now worth over $63.5 billion and represents more than 2.7% of Bitcoin’s total supply.
Strategy’s continued Bitcoin accumulation is powered by tools normally used for corporate finance, convertible notes, equity sales, and other capital market instruments. Instead of direct crypto trading, the company raises funds from institutional investors and converts those proceeds into Bitcoin holdings. This approach avoids the operational risks of custody and liquidity management while achieving large-scale crypto exposure.
The model has effectively turned Strategy into a Bitcoin investment tool. Its stock price often moves in tandem with the cryptocurrency’s market value. While this approach has led to strong performance in 2025, financial analysts have voiced concerns about the sustainability of such a strategy. Additionally, critics have pointed to leverage risks, market volatility, and the firm’s reliance on a single volatile asset class.
Liquidity Dynamics Highlighted by Ki Young Ju
Ju’s remarks highlighted the role of market liquidity in maintaining Strategy’s pace of Bitcoin accumulation. He described the operation as a “perpetual-motion engine,” where capital market transactions continually funnel funds into Bitcoin. He suggested that short-term volatility actually benefits this model, creating repeated opportunities to raise capital and purchase more BTC.
Ju also highlighted how treasury teams operating within this framework can take advantage of liquidity cycles. According to Ju, this dynamic creates a system that strengthens itself as long as market participants continue to perceive Strategy as a Bitcoin proxy.
Proof-of-Reserves Controversy Addressed
Michael Saylor also responded to calls for greater transparency in institutional Bitcoin holdings. During a side event at the Bitcoin 2025 conference in Las Vegas, he dismissed the idea of public proof-of-reserves as dangerous. Saylor warned that publishing wallet addresses could lead to cybersecurity threats, regulatory scrutiny, and legal exposure.
He maintained that releasing wallet data does not show all the company’s financial details, as it omits information about liabilities. He instead recommended the use of common auditing practices which involve checking by major accounting companies, to confirm figures under the rules of U.S. corporate law.
Saylor discussed how zero-knowledge proofs could provide one with a way to show something is true without sharing important data. Even so, he pointed out that these tools do not consider liabilities and could not be adopted until auditors, custodians and regulators accepted them as a group.
The current price of a Bitcoin for strategy is $69,979 and paper profits are now as high as $23 billion. Although others have not yet duplicated Square’s involvement in crypto, its strategy still attracts corporate and institutional attention to Bitcoin.
