Strategy CFO Andrew Kang is leaving the company. He announced the decision on October 26, citing personal reasons. This came a week after a record quarter: operating income was about $21 billion.
Strategy is Michael Saylor's company. It is the largest corporate holder of Bitcoin in the world. The company borrows money on the market and uses it to buy BTC.
This directly affects traders. Strategy is a constant buyer of Bitcoin worth billions of dollars. MSTR shares were down 6.4% in premarket trading on Friday.
What numbers are behind the quarter?
The quarter became the best in the company's history. Operating income for the third quarter was approximately $21 billion. That is the same amount the company raised on the market since the start of the year for Bitcoin purchases.
- 848,517 BTC - on Strategy's balance sheet as of October 25
- +26% - growth in BTC holdings since the start of the year
- $21 billion - operating income for the third quarter
How is the departure structured?
The company filed the document with the regulator on Thursday, October 29. Strategy specifically emphasized that the departure "was not the result of any disagreements" regarding the company's operations, policies or practices.
- November 5. Kang steps down as CFO.
- Until December 31. He remains an advisor to the company.
- From January 1. Reza Virasteh, currently Executive Vice President of Operations, becomes co-Chief Financial Officer.
While the handover is underway, the finance function is led by President and CEO Phong Le. He retains responsibility for Bitcoin strategy, capital markets work, treasury and investor relations. Virasteh is responsible for finance and budgeting of the software business.
What does this mean for a trader?
The market reaction diverged across securities. MSTR common shares were down 6.4% in premarket trading on Friday. STRC preferred shares were flat - $99.45.
Key point: Strategy buys Bitcoin worth billions. A change of the people responsible for raising money for these purchases is read by the market as a risk to the pace of BTC purchases.
Corporate reports and personnel news are easy to check in advance. See release dates and key events in the economic calendar.
Were you watching MSTR in premarket?
News like this comes out at night or before the open. You need to react in the first minutes, not a day later. And here it turns out that different prop firms have different rules on this. Some allow holding a position through a corporate report, others disable the account for entering during the release window, and for crypto the list of instruments and volume may be cut. These details are in the program rules, not in its description on the main page. Checking them against how you actually trade is cheaper before paying for the evaluation.