Bernstein: MicroStrategy's long debt maturity can buffer the impact of Bitcoin volatility

MicroStrategy plans to raise $4.2 billion over the next three years by issuing stocks or zero-coupon debt with a small amount of Bitcoin reserves as collateral, in order to purchase a large amount of Bitcoin through simple arbitrage. Analysts at Bernstein believe that "MicroStrategy is playing a Bitcoin leverage game." The longer debt term provides some buffer for the company in case of immediate repayment or Bitcoin price fluctuations. In addition, even if MicroStrategy has to issue stocks to repay convertible bonds, the dilution effect of these stocks on the company's equity is limited. MicroStrategy is increasingly relying on issuing stocks to purchase Bitcoin, but when it chooses convertible bonds, bond buyers can obtain options to convert them into company stocks at a certain price, which is almost equivalent to call options.