‘Buckle Up’—Bitcoin Price Suddenly Braced For A ‘Cambrian Explosion’
03/26 update below. This post was originally published on March 25
Bitcoin has surged over the last week as traders bet U.S. president Donald Trump could be pulling back from his threat of global trade tariffs (though fears are swirling over a new, mystery threat).
The bitcoin price has added around 10% since its early March lows but remains well off its peak of almost $110,000 per bitcoin set in January despite a a White House official revealing how Trump could spur the bitcoin price higher.
Now, as a BlackRock executive predicts a “big catalyst” for bitcoin could be on the horizon, traders are braced for meme stock darling GameStop to make a bitcoin-related announcement when it reports fourth-quarter results after Tuesday’s market close—potentially following in the footsteps of Michael Saylor’s Strategy.
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U.S. president Donald Trump hosted bitcoin and crypto company executives, including Strategy’s … More
Last month, GameStop received a proposal from Strive Asset Management recommending that the brick-and-mortar video game retailer convert its $5 billion in cash reserves into bitcoin, a move it claims would transform the company into the “premier bitcoin treasury company in the gaming sector.”
Strive Asset Management chief executive Matt Cole told GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen that he “has an incredible opportunity.”
“Letter received,” Cohen then posted to X. Just weeks earlier, Cohen set social media alight when he posted a picture of himself with Michael Saylor, the founder of software company turned acquisition vehicle Strategy.
03/26 update: GameStop has followed through with teased plans to adopt bitcoin, aping Michael Saylor’s Strategy that’s built up the world’s biggest corporate stash of bitcoin—with self-styled “bitcoin historian” Pete Rizzo telling traders to “buckle up.”
While GameStop has $4.75 billion in cash and said it plans to use some of this cash as well as future debt or equity issuances to buy bitcoin, it didn’t commit to an amount, somewhat disappointing those who had hoped the company would reveal a firm bitcoin-buy.
GameStop’s “investment policy permits investments in certain cryptocurrency assets, including bitcoin and U.S. dollar-denominated stablecoins, and if the company acquires bitcoin or U.S. dollar denominated stablecoins, the company will be exposed to certain risks associated with bitcoin or stablecoins, respectively,” the company’s fourth-quarter earnings report read.
GameStop’s stock has climbed almost 20% overnight after the announcement, though it remains well below the sky-high levels it reached in 2021. Meme stock traders, unofficially led by Keith “Roaring Kitty” Gill, helped send the stock price of companies, including GameStop and cinema chain AMC, to astronomical levels alongside cryptocurrencies like dogecoin.
Traders are betting GameStop could become the next Strategy, which has seen its stock explode 3,000% since it started buying bitcoin in the summer of 2020.
“Welcome to team bitcoin, Ryan Cohen,” Saylor posted to X along with the photo of their pair.
That growing team includes Metaplanet and Semler Scientific, both of which have adopted so-called bitcoin treasury strategies.
“Overall, news about crypto initiatives could make GameStop stock even more susceptible to sharp movements,” analysts at crypto payments platform B2BinPay, said in emailed comments.
“In the short term, this has already acted as a positive decision, as reflected in the company’s stock growth, however, it also carries risks of volatility. Stablecoins, of course, won’t carry those risks, but bitcoin can go both ways — offering potential for growth but also for a drop. So if the crypto market takes a big hit, it could negatively affect GameStop’s financial standing.”
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The bitcoin price has rocketed higher over the last year, recently falling back from its all-time … More
Strategy, until recently known as MicroStrategy, now holds around 500,000 bitcoin worth $42 billion after it began aggressively buying bitcoin in 2020.
Saylor was one of a handful of bitcoin and crypto company executives that attended the White House digital asset summit hosted by U.S. president Donald Trump earlier this month.
Last week, Saylor predicted there’s about to be a “Cambrian explosion” of companies and countries buying bitcoin during a Blockworks podcast.