Microsoft Buying Bitcoin? Michael Saylor Will Make His Case to the Board

Michael Saylor, co-founder and executive chairman of MicroStrategy, will present a Bitcoin investment strategy to Microsoft’s board of directors, advocating for the world’s largest crypto as a treasury asset.

In a November 19 Twitter Space discussion hosted by Bitcoin ETF issuer VanEck, the Bitcoin maximalist announced that he has agreed to deliver a concise, three-minute presentation to Microsoft’s leadership.

The pitch comes amidst a shareholder proposal calling for Microsoft to assess Bitcoin’s potential impact on its balance sheet.

“The activist that put that proposal together contacted me to present to the board, and I agreed to provide a 3-minute presentation,” Saylor said. “That’s all you’re allowed—and I’m going to present it to the board of directors”

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A staunch advocate of Bitcoin, Saylor criticized corporations with large cash reserves for “burning shareholder value,” during yesterday's the Twitter space discussion.

In his view, Bitcoin can bring great stability to enterprise value. “It would be a lot more stable stock and a much less risky stock if half of the enterprise value of the stock was based upon tangible assets or property like Bitcoin,” he stated.

Saylor, who has led MicroStrategy to become the largest corporate Bitcoin holder with 252,220 BTC valued at $16.8 billion, believes Bitcoin is a necessary asset for companies with large cash reserves.

He shared during the discussion that his earlier request for a private meeting with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella to discuss the topic has not yet been accepted.

In October, Saylor directly addressed Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella on Twitter, saying, “If you want to make the next trillion dollars for $MSFT shareholders, call me.”

Microsoft shareholders are scheduled to vote on whether the company should conduct a formal assessment of Bitcoin as an investment on Dec. 10.

The National Center for Public Policy Research (NCPPR) introduced the proposal last month, citing MicroStrategy’s success with Bitcoin. MicroStrategy’s stock has outperformed Microsoft’s by 313% this year, even though the company operates at a much smaller scale.

“MicroStrategy, like Microsoft, is a technology company, but unlike Microsoft, it holds Bitcoin on its balance sheet,” noted NCPPR in the proposal.

Despite the push from shareholders and Saylor’s advocacy, Microsoft’s board has recommended voting against the proposal.

Microsoft maintains that it already evaluates a broad range of investment options, including Bitcoin. The company’s share price traded relatively modest on Wednesday, increasing 0.49% to $417.79, Google Finance data shows.

Edited by Stacy Elliott.