Strategy (NASDAQ:MSTR), which decisively remains the largest public holder of bitcoin and a prominent digital asset treasury company, has formally objected to a new consultation launched by index provider MSCI. The firm described the proposal as discriminatory toward companies that maintain substantial digital asset reserves as part of their corporate strategy.
In a letter signed by Executive Chairman Michael Saylor and Chief Executive Phong Le, Strategy argued that MSCI’s latest plan to restrict eligibility for its Global Investable Market Indexes represents a thinly veiled attempt to sideline digital asset treasury firms.
The company characterized the consultation as arbitrary, poorly defined, and inconsistent with established accounting and securities-law standards.
MSCI recently invited market feedback on a proposed eligibility screen that would subject companies whose operating assets fall below 50 percent of total assets to extra scrutiny and possible exclusion.
Strategy contends that the terminology “operating” versus “non-operating” lacks any foundation in U.S. GAAP, IFRS, or recognized legal tests.
The firm notes that it already reports its bitcoin activities as an operating segment and records related gains and losses as operating items after discussions with Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) staff.
The company further maintains that the proposed test would leave other asset-intensive businesses—such as real-estate investment trusts, timber operators, and energy-infrastructure firms—untouched while concentrating its effects on digital-asset treasury companies.
Strategy views the current consultation as a reworking of an earlier 2025 proposal that would have excluded firms whose digital-asset holdings exceeded 50 percent of total assets.
That earlier plan was withdrawn after industry pushback, yet Strategy says the new language produces the same outcome.
Strategy emphasized that adoption of the rule would have little practical effect on its own operations.
Funds that track MSCI Global Investable Market Indexes hold only about 3.1 percent of the company’s basic shares outstanding.
The firm warned, however, that the change would damage MSCI’s standing as a neutral and reliable index provider by introducing discretionary policy judgments into index construction.
The letter also requested that any eventual rule apply solely to financial filings issued after the proposal is finalized and that it rest on recognized accounting or legal standards accompanied by a published consultation record.
Strategy has invited investors and other market participants to submit their own comments to MSCI before the September 30 feedback deadline.
A decision is expected in mid-October, with any constituent changes potentially taking effect in December.
The dispute highlights ongoing tension over how index compilers should classify companies that treat bitcoin and other digital assets as core treasury holdings rather than passive investments. Strategy, which employs roughly 1,500 people worldwide and continues to operate its software business, insists it is an operating company that actively deploys bitcoin to create shareholder value.