Early Riders | Open Range Weekly | 9.7.25
Strategy was not added to the S&P 500, despite qualifying for the index on the initial change in weighting. The corporate acquisitions continued as Strategy, Figma, Metaplanet, Treasury, and CIMG all grew their bitcoin holdings, among others. On the institutional front, U.S. Bancorp allowed resumed institutional bitcoin custody services after putting the offering on hold in 2022. American Bitcoin completed its merger with Gryphon Mining Digital, as executive chairman Eric Trump defined its mission as "a race to accumulate the most bitcoin," which seemingly went under the radar despite the Trump family and close associates’ consensus view that acquiring more bitcoin is a worthwhile endeavor.
Bitcoin Update
Bitcoin jumped almost 3% on the week, following gold's uptrend due to increased speculation for easier monetary policy incoming despite the S&P remaining roughly flat on the week.
Early Riders Media
Early Riders published the research report: Metcalfe’s Law, Moore’s Law, and Reflexivity In Bitcoin detailing the confluence of market forces at play driving positive valuation feedback loops in both bitcoin and bitcoin infrastructure.
Michael, Brian, and Liam discuss the latest in capital formation, market structure, and bitcoin adoption on this week's podcast.
You can find all our episodes on our podcast website as well as listen on YouTube, Apple, and Spotify.
Industry & Institutional Updates
Strategy purchased 4,048 Bitcoin for $449.3 million bringing its total holdings to 636,505 BTC, worth over $69 billion, and was not added to the S&P 500, despite meeting the necessary criteria.
Metaplanet has acquired an additional 1,009 BTC, to bring its total holdings to 20,000 BTC, making it the sixth-largest corporate Bitcoin treasury globally and shareholders approved a plan to raise approximately $884 million via an overseas share sale to fund further Bitcoin accumulation.
Figma disclosed it grew its holdings by $21m last quarter, and now holds $91 million in Bitcoin ETFs, part of its $1.6 billion treasury, as CEO Dylan Field emphasized this is a modest, strategic diversification, not a pivot to become a “Bitcoin company.”
American Bitcoin completed its all-stock merger with Gryphon Digital Mining to list on Nasdaq, and says it will sell up to $2.1B in new shares to scale operations and accumulate more BTC through purchases and mining.
U.S. Bancorp resumed institutional Bitcoin custody services, initially launched in 2021 and paused in 2022 due to regulatory challenges, now supported by sub-custodian NYDIG and expanded to include Bitcoin ETF clients.
Treasury, a Netherlands-based Bitcoin treasury company backed by the Winklevoss twins and Nakamoto Holdings raised €126 million to acquire over 1,000 BTC and is pursuing a reverse listing on Euronext Amsterdam via a merger with MKB Nedsense.
CIMG Inc. raised $55 million through a share sale, exchanging 220 million shares to acquire 500 BTC as part of its long-term financial strategy to build a Bitcoin treasury.
Regulatory Updates
The SEC has unveiled a sweeping, pro-crypto rulemaking agenda, proposing nearly half of its 20 new rules to ease digital asset regulation by defining clearer frameworks for issuance, trading, and custody, introducing potential safe harbors, and opening the door for crypto to trade on national exchanges.
Japan’s Financial Services Agency (FSA) has proposed moving cryptocurrency regulation from the Payment Services Act to the more stringent Financial Instruments and Exchange Act (FIEA), aiming to enhance investor protection via securities-style rules on disclosures, enforcement, and exchange operations.
Chart of the Week
Gold reserves as a percentage of international reserves rose sharply in 1Q25, to reach its highest level in the past 30 years, primarily taking share from the dollar, as countries look towards scare, apolitical assets amid past and expected monetary inflation.
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