Need to know what happened in crypto today? Here is the latest news on daily trends and events impacting Bitcoin price, blockchain, DeFi, NFTs, Web3 and crypto regulation.
Michael Saylor has bought another 12,000 Bitcoin (BTC) using the net proceeds of an $800 million convertible note offering. Crypto investors should expect to see the first significant inflows from major wirehouses, institutional consultants, and large consultants into Bitcoin ETFs next quarter. Meanwhile, shares of Coinbase have rallied more than 60% this year, climbing back above their IPO price for the first time in two years.
MicroStrategy uses $800M note offering to buy more Bitcoin
MicroStrategy announced its intent to offer a new round of convertible notes on March 6 as Bitcoin reached a new all-time high. The company completed the private offering on March 8, with the aggregate principal amount sold valued at $800 million.
The firm’s founder and chairman Michael Saylor confirmed on social media platform X that the net proceeds of the note offering and excess cash were used to acquire an additional 12,000 Bitcoin at an average of $68,477 per BTC.
Before its latest Bitcoin purchase, MicroStrategy held around 193,000 BTC at an average price of $31,544, representing a balance of $12.9 billion and a return of 112% since inception. Saylor confirmed that MicroStrategy now holds 205,000 BTC, which it has acquired for $6.91 billion at an average price of $31,5000 per coin.
Large corporations, major wirehouses gearing up to buy Bitcoin: Bitwise
Institutions representing “trillions of dollars in assets” are preparing to buy into spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) by the end of June, said crypto-native asset manager Bitwise.
In a March 9 investment memo sent out to investors, Bitwise chief investment officer Matt Hougan said Bitwise was involved in “serious due diligence” discussions with large corporations, major wirehouses and institutional consultants looking to increase their exposure to Bitcoin in the coming months.
Hougan said that Bitwise had already confirmed that a wide array of individual retail investors, family offices, hedge funds and venture capital firms were looking to snap up more allocation into spot Bitcoin ETFs.
“Just as important as who is buying today is who will be buying tomorrow,” he said.
Coinbase stock recovers IPO listing price
Shares of Coinbase (COIN) are back above $250, regaining their IPO price for the first time in two years on the back of a recovering crypto market.
COIN stock rallied by as much as 11.5% on March 8 before paring gains later in the session. The stock was last seen trading around $255, exceeding its listing price of $250.
It has been a rollercoaster ride for the cryptocurrency exchange since it went public two years ago. COIN shares traded as low as $33 in 2023 as crypto was engulfed in a bear market. Now, COIN is riding the momentum of surging Bitcoin and crypto prices, largely triggered by the approval of spot BTC exchange-traded funds in the United States.
Coinbase is coming off a solid fiscal fourth quarter, generating net income of $263 million on $905 million in net revenue.
