Svmuu News: Standard Chartered Bank stated that it is maintaining its price forecast of $100,000 for Bitcoin by the end of 2026. The bank believes that the recent market decline triggered by developments related to Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy) is not due to a deterioration of the company’s balance sheet, but rather stems from the market’s failure to fully understand the company’s strategic adjustments.
Geoffrey Kendrick, Global Head of Digital Asset Research at Standard Chartered, noted in a report that Strategy’s recent actions are disrupting short-term market expectations for Bitcoin. The market had previously accepted the company’s narrative of “never selling Bitcoin,” but Strategy now appears to be shifting toward a more complex capital management model; whether it can clearly communicate this change will determine when market pressure eases.
Currently, Strategy holds 843,775 Bitcoin, accounting for just over 4% of Bitcoin’s total supply of 21 million.From 2020 through mid-2025, Strategy’s mNAV (enterprise value / Bitcoin asset value) remained consistently above 1, enabling the firm to raise capital through stock offerings to purchase Bitcoin and generate shareholder value. The commitment to “never sell Bitcoin” was central to the market’s acceptance of this model.However, as the current mNAV approaches 1, the leverage effect of this financing model is diminishing.
Kendrick believes that Strategy is shifting from “Bitcoin-accumulating instruments” to “Bitcoin-credit-backed instruments,” that is, by holding Bitcoin as the credit foundation for its perpetual preferred stock, STRC.STRC, currently valued at approximately $10 billion, is the largest financial instrument launched by Strategy. It offers an annualized dividend yield of 12%, paid in cash every half-month, and employs an interest rate adjustment mechanism to keep its price near its $100 par value.
Standard Chartered Bank noted that STRC is currently trading at around $90, while Strategy’s U.S. dollar reserves—used to pay dividends—amount to approximately $2.55 billion, sufficient to cover about 17.4 months of dividend payments.
Kendrick noted that Strategy’s policy adjustment allowing for the sale of “Bitcoin” does not mean the company will necessarily continue to sell. He believes that as long as the market trusts that the new capital structure arrangement can stabilize the price of STRC, Strategy may not actually need to sell “Bitcoin.”He likened this mechanism to a central bank’s promise to “act no matter what”: with market confidence restored, actual intervention might not occur at all. (The Block)