Insights on Strategy’s Bitcoin Custody: Saylor Advocates Strong Investments Amid Wallet Transparency Debate

What secrets lie behind Strategy’s Bitcoin custody split between segregated and omnibus wallets?

• Michael Saylor urges strong conviction and strategic Bitcoin investment at the Bitcoin 2025 conference.

• Arkham Intelligence identifies 97% of Strategy’s 580,250 BTC holdings, nearing transparent proof of reserves.

At the Bitcoin 2025 conference in Las Vegas, Michael Saylor, co-founder and executive chairman of Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy), encouraged investors to stay dedicated to Bitcoin [BTC].

Saylor pushes everyone to buy Bitcoin

In his speech, titled “21 Ways to Wealth,” he emphasized that Bitcoin stands as the ultimate form of capital.

Saylor also highlighted the critical role of regulatory compliance for companies aiming to thrive in the evolving cryptocurrency landscape.

He said, “Every thoughtful individual everywhere in the world is going to want perfected capital. Every one of your enemies is going to want incorruptible capital, and all of the AIs are going to want programmable capital.”

Saylor encouraged the audience to build strong conviction, act with courage, and strategically shift their investments.

He added, “Bitcoin is engineered to outperform everything. Take your fiat currency, trade it for bitcoin. Take your long-term capital, trade it for bitcoin. Sell your bonds, trade [them] for Bitcoin. Sell your inferior equity, sell your inferior real estate property, buy Bitcoin.”

What’s behind his motivation?

Moreover, Saylor emphasized the value of equity as a path to wealth, explaining that sharing opportunities with investors who share the risk can significantly boost growth.

He cited Metaplanet’s rise from $10 million to a $5 billion market cap through equity partnerships.

At the conference, he also rejected calls for his company, Strategy, to disclose proof of reserves for its Bitcoin holdings, labeling the practice as a ‘bad idea’ that poses security risks.

That being said, an intriguing development has emerged amid the ongoing proof-of-reserve debate sparked by Michael Saylor’s remarks.

Strategy’s actual Bitcoin holdings

Following this, Arkham Intelligence, an on-chain analytics firm, has reportedly traced wallets linked to Strategy’s Bitcoin holdings, successfully identifying 97% of the company’s total stash of 580,250 BTC.

In an X (formerly Twitter) post, Arkham Intelligence announced, “WE’VE IDENTIFIED EVEN MORE OF SAYLOR’S BTC – 97% OF ALL HOLDINGS.”

It added, “We have identified an additional 53,833 BTC ($5.75B), bringing our coverage of Saylor’s Bitcoin holdings to $59.92B, almost ALL of his BTC.”

After uncovering an additional 70,816 BTC, the total amount traced now stands at approximately $54.5 billion.

This advancement moves Arkham closer to delivering an open and transparent proof of reserves for the company’s Bitcoin assets.

Their explorer reveals that over 454,000 BTC are held in segregated custody, while around 107,000 BTC remain under Fidelity’s omnibus custody and are not visible on the platform.

The community stands disappointed

However, this move was highly disregarded by the crypto community, as noted by an X user who said, “The positive to this shows Saylor does actually have the bitcoin. The downside you now set the market up for a nice black swan in 2 years.”

Echoing similar sentiments, another user said,

Source: MadPunk/X

This coincided with Strategy expanding its Bitcoin portfolio by acquiring an additional 4,020 BTC for around $427.1 million, bringing its total holdings to an impressive 580,250 BTC.

While all this was happening, Bitcoin’s price experienced fluctuations, dipping to $105,205.19 with a 2.94% decline over 24 hours, before recovering slightly to $370.63 following a 1.75% increase, according to Google Finance.

Conclusion

This recent surge in identified holdings has raised questions about the transparency practices of Strategy, as well as the implications for Bitcoin’s market stability. Moving forward, investors must remain vigilant and consider both the benefits and risks associated with such large-scale holdings. As Saylor states, a strong belief in Bitcoin remains crucial for navigating the complexities of modern finance.