Bitcoin treasury companies sell up, repay debt, pivot to AI as share prices collapse

Markets Bitcoin treasury companies sell up, repay debt, pivot to AI as share prices collapse Falling share prices, debt obligations and difficult market conditions are forcing former bitcoin accumulators to sell their holdings and restructure operations. By James Van Straten | Edited by Sheldon Reback Jul 24, 2026, 10:53 a.m. 2 min read Make preferred on Share Share this article Copy link X icon X (Twitter) LinkedIn Facebook Email Make preferred on Bitcoin's price collapse has forced some digital asset treasury companies to close. (Ammodramus/Wikimedia Commons) Summary Show Strategy, Satsuma, Smarter Web Company, Sequans, Nakamoto and Empery Digital have sold bitcoin to repay debt, fund operations, finance buybacks or strengthen their cash reserves. Bitcoin miners MARA and Bitdeer have sold holdings to finance AI infrastructure, while leadership changes at Twenty One Capital and BSTR’s failed merger signal broader disruption across the digital-asset treasury sector. Strategy (MSTR) pioneered the digital asset treasury (DAT) model in 2020, spurring a wave of publicly listed imitators who splurged their own cash and borrowed more to buy bitcoin BTC $ 64,969.70 as the price climbed toward a record $126,000 in October 2025. Since then, bitcoin has slumped about 50%, sending share prices tumbling and forcing many of the companies to reconsider their accumulation strategies. According to VanEck Head of Digital Assets Research Matthew Sigel , several companies have now exited crypto entirely or are reducing holdings substantially. Just this week, Satsuma Technology (SATS) shareholders approved the liquidation of all 668 BTC, the return of capital and a delisting from the London Stock Exchange. Another LSE-listed firm, Smarter Web Company (SWC), sold 178 BTC to repay a convertible instrument “When we entered into Smarter Convert in August 2025, it provided an innovative alternative to traditional leverage,” Smarter Web CEO Andrew Webley said in a statement . “… whilst we continue to recognise the potential benefits of both fiat and Bitcoin-denominated convertible instruments, we do not currently believe they represent the right capital solution for The Smarter Web Company.” Among others abandoning the treasury approach include Sequans Communications (SQNS), which sold 1,025 BTC before disposing of nearly 80% of its remaining holdings to repay convertible debt. It has ruled out further purchases and plans to monetize its remaining 658 BTC. Nakamoto (NAKA), whose shares have fallen 99% since its May 2025 SPAC deal, sold around 284 BTC to raise $20 million for working capital following its acquisitions of BTC Inc. and UTXO Management. It sold roughly 40 BTC received through its derivatives program, according to VanEck’s Sigel. Almost 70% of its remaining 5,342 BTC were pledged against a Kraken loan maturing in December, creating what Sigel described as a potential binary event. It’s not only specialist treasury companies that are reducing their holdings of the largest cryptocurrency. Crypto miners including Bitdeer and MARA Holdings are selling bitcoin to repurchase or repay debt and repurpose their energy-supply deals and computing resources to power AI data centers. Other sellers include Empery Digital, which has reportedly sold almost half its bitcoin to finance buybacks and debt repayment, and Strategy , which has sold about 3,620 BTC in recent weeks and authorized additional sales to support its U.S. dollar reserves. Strategy, which started the investment trend, remains the largest publicly listed holder of bitcoin, with more than 840,000 BTC. CEO Michael Sayler remains bullish. "We will probably sell some Bitcoin to fund a dividend just to inoculate the market," he said. That’s not a signal of broad-based exit plan. Beyond bitcoin sales, management changes and corporate deals are also unravelling. Jack Mallers stepped down as CEO of Twenty One Capital, while Adam Back’s Bitcoin Standard Treasury Company (BSTR) failed to complete its proposed merger due to unfavorable market conditions. Bitcoin News Digital Asset Treasury Related Assets Bitcoin $ 64,969.70 1.10 % Latest Crypto News 1 India orders takedown of Jack Dorsey’s bitcoin-linked messaging app Bitchat 44 minutes ago 2 BitMEX faces proposed class-action suit for theft, insider trading as crypto exchange shuts down 1 hour ago 3 Live updates: Dogecoin and ether lead pullback as investors digest tech earnings 3 hours ago 4 Ripple’s RLUSD gets two boosts as transfer volume drops 25% 4 hours ago 5 Mirae plans to turn crypto exchange Korbit into something Korea hasn't seen before 4 hours ago 6 Bitcoin holds near $65,000 as $800 billion AI selloff leaves crypto largely untouched 6 hours ago 7 Clarity Act expected to miss its window before Congress' summer break, leadership says 14 hours ago 8 Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev's X account hacked to promote token amid memecoin frenzy 16 hours ago 9 Tassat wants to help smaller banks tap the trillion-dollar stablecoin boom before Wall Street locks them out 16 hours ago 10 Coinbase's corporate customers can now accept payments from AI agents 18 hours ago Latest Research Crypto Flows, Share and the Selective Rotation Crypto Flows, Share and the Selective Rotation Markets repositioned since June, but Binance held share (~55% user funds, ~24% spot) and drew net inflows in early July while the tracked market saw outflows. By CoinDesk Research Jul 22, 2026 Markets repositioned since June, but Binance held share (~55% user funds, ~24% spot) and drew net inflows in early July while the tracked market saw outflows. Why it matters : Markets repositioned since June, but Binance held share (~55% user funds, ~24% spot) and drew net inflows in early July while the tracked market saw outflows. View Full Report More From Markets Mirae plans to turn crypto exchange Korbit into something Korea hasn't seen before Bitcoin holds near $65,000 as $800 billion AI selloff leaves crypto largely untouched Crypto catches its breath as bitcoin settles into a holding pattern amid July rally More From Bitcoin India orders takedown of Jack Dorsey’s bitcoin-linked messaging app Bitchat BitMEX faces proposed class-action suit for theft, insider trading as crypto exchange shuts down Live updates: Dogecoin and ether lead pullback as investors digest tech earnings