Michael Saylor: "Bitcoin has fundamentally won" - Foundation laid for the digital credit market

Strategy founder and chairman Michael Saylor revealed his views in a discussion on the “What Bitcoin Did” podcast, stating that true success in Bitcoin lies not in short-term price fluctuations but in the progress of institutional and foundational adoption. He points out that the environment surrounding Bitcoin has fundamentally changed between 2025 and 2026.

2025’s Historic Leap—Strengthening Fundamentals from Institutional Adoption to Infrastructure

Saylor emphasizes that 2025 was a pivotal turning point in Bitcoin history. He regards it as a year when the foundational institutional infrastructure supporting Bitcoin was established, moving beyond mere price increases.

The number of companies holding Bitcoin on their balance sheets grew from 30–60 in 2024 to about 200 by the end of 2025. This is not just an increase in numbers but signifies serious adoption by major corporations.

Progress in insurance is also noteworthy. Saylor himself experienced the removal of insurance coverage when purchasing Bitcoin in 2020. He had to continue insuring his personal assets for four years, but in 2025, insurance coverage was restored. This suggests that significant barriers to institutional Bitcoin purchases have been removed.

A major turning point was also the change in accounting standards. The introduction of fair value accounting allowed companies to recognize unrealized capital gains from Bitcoin holdings as profits. Regarding the long-standing issue of unrealized capital gains tax, positive guidance from the government was provided in 2025, making investment decisions easier for companies.

The maturity of financial infrastructure also accelerated. At the start of the year, borrowing only about 5 cents against $1 billion worth of Bitcoin was possible. By year-end, most major US banks had begun offering loans collateralized by physical Bitcoin ETFs (IBIT), and about a quarter of banks announced plans for direct Bitcoin collateralized loans. JPMorgan Chase and Morgan Stanley are reportedly discussing Bitcoin trading and settlement functions in early 2026.

Government support also became clear. The US Treasury issued positive guidance on including crypto assets on bank balance sheets, and the chairs of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) expressed support for Bitcoin. The Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) is advancing commercialization of Bitcoin derivatives markets. Additionally, a physical issuance and redemption mechanism was introduced that allows tax-free exchanges of $1 million worth of Bitcoin for IBIT, or vice versa.

Bitcoin Should Be Evaluated from a Long-Term Perspective, Not Short-Term Price Fluctuations

Saylor repeatedly emphasizes the futility of evaluating Bitcoin performance on a 100-day basis. Despite Bitcoin reaching a new all-time high 95 days ago, market participants are overly reactive to recent price movements. He advocates returning to Bitcoin’s philosophy of “lowering temporal preference.”

Looking back at history, dedicated efforts in any ideological movement typically take a decade. Many efforts fail even after ten years, and some only succeed after more than twenty. If the ultimate goal is institutional adoption of Bitcoin, judging success or failure over cycles of ten weeks or ten months misses the point.

The question of what value predicting Bitcoin’s price in 2026 holds is also a message to market participants. The entire industry is heading in the right direction, and the network is steadily developing. The recent 90-day price decline was an excellent opportunity for informed investors to buy more Bitcoin.

Evaluating Bitcoin using its 4-year moving average reveals a strongly bullish trend. Saylor stresses the importance of observing macro trends rather than being distracted by short-term volatility.

Corporate Bitcoin Purchases Are Rational Business Decisions—Digital Capital Like Power

In 2025, many treasury companies emerged adopting a strategy of “selling stocks to buy Bitcoin.” Saylor expresses clear support for this trend.

For unprofitable companies, holding Bitcoin can significantly improve their balance sheets. For profitable companies, it can contribute to increased earnings. For example, he questions what grounds there are to criticize a company that, after losing $10 million annually, holds $100 million worth of Bitcoin and generates $30 million in capital gains.

The logical error in criticizing Bitcoin purchases is focusing on the wrong point. Saylor argues that it’s not the act of companies buying Bitcoin that should be criticized, but rather the choice of not buying Bitcoin when facing financial difficulties.

There are over 400 million companies worldwide. Some voices worry whether the market can handle 200 companies purchasing Bitcoin. Saylor questions this, asking why all 400 million companies cannot buy Bitcoin—highlighting a fundamental issue. He points out that concerns about market saturation are actually based on a fundamental misunderstanding of market size.

He compares Bitcoin-holding companies to “factories equipped with power infrastructure.” They are not just speculative assets but tools for productivity enhancement. Just as electricity is a universal capital powering all machinery, Bitcoin is a universal capital in the digital age. Although some fear that corporate purchases are driven by profit motives rather than genuine development interest, Saylor considers this a fundamental misunderstanding.

Strategy’s Digital Credit Market Strategy—Potential for a $10 Trillion Market

Saylor states that Strategy has no intention of entering banking. Instead, it focuses on the “digital credit” market, aimed at enhancing corporate creditworthiness using US dollar reserves.

Strategy’s business model is theoretically expandable almost infinitely. It proposes a product concept called STRC (Strategy Deferred Digital Credit), aiming for a listed product with a 10% dividend yield and a valuation of one or two times its value. If it captures 10% of the US Treasury bond market, that would amount to a $10 trillion market. This indicates that Strategy’s potential market size could reach $10 trillion.

Considering the current state of the senior credit and general corporate credit markets, market saturation is unlikely. Building a Bitcoin-collateralized derivatives business could yield results far larger than traditional derivatives. Bitcoin-collateralized exchanges and insurance companies utilizing Bitcoin capital are also becoming a reality. Currently, no insurance companies worldwide use Bitcoin as collateral or capital, making this a vast, untapped field.

Saylor highlights key legal points. A company’s stock value is not determined solely by current capital utilization; future plans also influence valuation. Just because something isn’t currently implemented doesn’t mean it’s impossible to do.

Strengthening Creditworthiness with US Dollar Reserves—Growth Potential Beyond Traditional Markets

Strategy’s reason for accumulating US dollar reserves is to improve corporate creditworthiness and enhance its reputation among credit investors. For credit product buyers, volatility in Bitcoin and stocks is excessive. While equity investors might want to increase Bitcoin holdings due to high volatility, credit investors seek assets with the highest creditworthiness.

To become a major player in the digital credit space, improving corporate creditworthiness is key. Holding dollar reserves enhances creditworthiness and increases the attractiveness of products.

Regarding the current situation where many treasury companies’ P/B ratios are below 1, Saylor warns against short-term thinking. Companies exist to create value, which should be determined by their operational performance. If a company in Japan could sell credit products at a 6% yield when the general credit market yields only 2%, its valuation would be among the highest in Japan.

In essence, a company’s value is determined by its intrinsic worth, and how to achieve that is crucial. Strategy’s focus is on creating a digital credit market. The potential of this market is immense, far surpassing traditional financial markets. As of early 2026, this foundation is already being established, and the digital credit market centered around Bitcoin is poised to grow into a new era of finance.