Bitcoin [BTC] is currently experiencing a mixed phase, and the same uncertainty is reflected in its related stocks.
While Bitcoin struggles to hold around $67,536.61, many crypto-related stocks are declining, reflecting growing caution among investors.
Strategy, one of the largest corporate holders of Bitcoin, dropped 4.49% to $133.53. Crypto mining companies faced even sharper losses, with Riot Platforms falling 9.20% and Marathon Digital (MARA) declining 8.67%.
The trend is not limited to the U.S.—Japan’s Metaplanet also dropped 6.32%.
The growing concern surrounding Bitcoin DATs
Remarking on the same, investor Charles Edwards said,
“77% of Bitcoin Treasury Companies are underwater on their Bitcoin buys. The last time this happened was May 2022.”
For those unaware, the May 2022 collapse was driven by the crisis in the Terra-Luna ecosystem.
When the algorithmic stablecoin UST lost its $1 peg, the system entered a death spiral. In an attempt to restore the peg, the Luna Foundation Guard sold over 80,000 Bitcoin, but the effort failed.
The heavy selling pushed Bitcoin down from around $40,000 to nearly $25,000, wiping out more than $40 billion from the crypto market within a week.
Many companies holding Bitcoin in their treasuries, along with crypto miners, suffered major losses.
The crash also exposed how interconnected the crypto industry had become. Hedge fund Three Arrows Capital (3AC), which reportedly lost about $500 million in the collapse, soon became insolvent.
This triggered a chain reaction, heavily impacting lenders like Celsius and Voyager Digital.
As users rushed to withdraw funds, both platforms were forced to freeze withdrawals, turning a market downturn into a wider institutional crisis that marked the start of the crypto winter.
And now the same fear is rising again.
Bitcoin ETF and Bitcoin Treasuries holdings
Zooming out, Bitcoin spot ETFs also recorded about $348.9 million in net outflows, which at first glance suggested that investors were pulling money out of the market.
However, a closer look at corporate Bitcoin holdings tells a slightly different story.
Public companies continue to hold a large amount of Bitcoin. By early March, companies collectively owned around 1.138 million BTC. Strategy holds the largest share with about 720,737 BTC.
It is followed by MARA Holdings with 53,822 BTC, Metaplanet with 35,102 BTC, and Riot Platforms with 18,005 BTC.
Despite the current turbulence, Strategy CEO Phong Le and Nakamoto Chairman David Bailey recently dissected the path forward for Digital Asset Treasuries (DATs), noting,
“If we really want the progress to continue, we need more people to own Bitcoin every year. And it’s just an inevitability...And Bitcoin will be successful with or without the government.”
Final Summary
- The fact that most Bitcoin treasury firms are underwater recalls warning signs seen before the last crypto winter.
- Bitcoin’s trajectory increasingly depends on institutional adoption rather than short-term market cycles.
