Why Strategy (MSTR) Stock Is the Most-Shorted Large Cap in the World

TLDR

• Strategy (MSTR) holds the largest short position among global equities over $25B, with ~14% of its $41.6B market cap sold short.
• Much of the short interest is linked to basis trades, not pure bearish bets — traders buy Bitcoin ETFs like IBIT while shorting MSTR to capture the premium.
• The company holds 717,722 BTC worth ~$47B, but sits on roughly $7B in unrealized losses.
• MSTR stock surged ~8% on Feb. 25 as Bitcoin climbed 6.5% toward $68,000.
• Strategy completed its 100th Bitcoin purchase, buying 592 BTC for ~$39.8M at an average of $67,286 per coin.

Strategy Inc. (MSTR) has earned an unusual title: the most shorted stock among global equities with a market cap above $25 billion.

Strategy Inc, MSTR

About 14% of its $41.6 billion market cap has been sold short, according to data from Goldman Sachs and FactSet. That puts it ahead of every other large-cap stock on the planet by that measure.

But the story behind that number is more complicated than it looks.

A big chunk of those short positions aren’t straight-up bets that MSTR will collapse. Instead, many are part of what traders call a basis trade — buying Bitcoin exposure through a spot ETF while simultaneously shorting MSTR to profit from the gap between Strategy’s stock price and the value of its actual Bitcoin holdings.

Jane Street is one name that keeps coming up. The firm recently disclosed a position of more than 7 million shares in BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), alongside a large MSTR position — a classic paired trade setup.

$7 Billion in Unrealized Losses

Strategy currently holds 717,722 BTC, accumulated since 2020 through convertible notes, equity offerings, and cash from its legacy software business. The total cost basis sits at $54.56 billion, at an average purchase price of $76,020 per coin.

With Bitcoin trading around $67,577 at the time of reporting, that puts the company roughly $7 billion underwater on a mark-to-market basis. The coins haven’t been sold — the losses are on paper — but markets price forward, and lower BTC prices reduce asset coverage relative to the company’s outstanding debt.

That dynamic is what makes MSTR swing harder than Bitcoin itself. Leverage cuts both ways.

On Feb. 25, Bitcoin jumped 6.5% to near $68,000. MSTR responded by surging nearly 8%, a reminder of how tightly the two are linked — and how quickly short sellers can feel the heat when BTC moves up.

100th Bitcoin Purchase

Earlier that same week, Strategy announced it had completed its 100th Bitcoin purchase since starting its accumulation strategy in 2020.

The company picked up 592 BTC for approximately $39.8 million, paying an average of $67,286 per coin. The purchase was funded through the sale of 297,940 Class A shares via its at-the-market offering program.

Coinbase (COIN) also ranked in Goldman’s short interest report, coming in fourth with short bets equal to 11% of its market cap.

Anchorage Digital co-founder and CEO Nathan McCauley disclosed on Feb. 25 that the digital bank holds Strategy’s perpetual preferred stock, STRC, on its balance sheet.

MSTR stock is down about 12% year-to-date, with a current market cap of approximately $45.31 billion.

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