Bitcoin Could Hit $100,000 in Second Quarter as Strategy Eyes Another 3,000 BTC

Strategy, formerly MicroStrategy, is the world’s largest corporate holder of Bitcoin, and its continued purchases have long supported market demand. If financing constraints turned the company into a seller, Bitcoin prices could fall and Strategy’s own liquidity could deteriorate, potentially creating a cascade of liquidations reminiscent of Terra Luna in 2022. However, the company’s net leverage ratio is just 11%, and no debt covenant currently requires it to sell Bitcoin.

Strategy said on May 15, 2026, that it would use $1.38 billion in proceeds from share sales to repurchase convertible debt and pause Bitcoin purchases. Bitcoin subsequently fell 21% in 10 days, retesting $61,000 for the first time in four months. The company’s cash balance dropped to $900 million, enough to cover only six months of dividends. However, 10x Research pointed to $5.4 billion in net spot ETF redemptions since May 12, arguing that inflation and institutional selling pressure were the main drivers.

Strategy has long increased its Bitcoin holdings through debt and securities issuance, while the ex-dividend date of its STRC preferred stock has become a closely watched market marker. Over the past six months, BTC mostly declined in the week after STRC went ex-dividend. Its latest move above $79,000, the highest since early February, is therefore seen as an important sign that the short-term trading structure is strengthening.

The latest price action shows Bitcoin rising within a week of STRC’s ex-dividend date, breaking the previous slump pattern for the first time in six months. Analysts said negative funding rates forced bearish traders to cover their positions, triggering a short squeeze. At the same time, US investors aggressively bought spot Bitcoin through Coinbase, helping push BTC toward and then above $79,000.

Bitcoin has long been viewed as “digital gold,” competing with gold and other global stores of value. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission approved spot Bitcoin ETFs, including Bitwise’s product, on January 10, 2024, giving pension funds, asset managers and other institutions access to Bitcoin through regulated investment vehicles and broadening its potential funding base.

Bitwise Chief Investment Officer Matt Hougan recently said Bitcoin could surpass $1 million within the next 10 years if it captures about 17% of the global store-of-value market. He said institutional investors continued to hold even when Bitcoin fell 50%, while professional investors are gradually increasing portfolio allocations as volatility declines.

Bitcoin is considered a highly volatile risk asset and typically comes under pressure when the dollar strengthens and U.S. Treasury yields rise. Its ability to hold above $71,000 this time reflects resilient buying demand. MicroStrategy, now known as Strategy, has continued raising funds to accumulate BTC, making it the listed company with the world’s largest Bitcoin holdings.

As of July 19, 2026, Bitcoin remained above $71,000 and outperformed U.S. stocks, showing little drag from simultaneous increases in the dollar, oil prices and U.S. Treasury yields. Strategy raised about $776 million through its STRC preferred security, enough to potentially buy about another 11,000 BTC.

Joe Burnett, vice president and strategist at Strive, believes AI will boost productivity and lower the cost of goods and services, creating long-term technological deflation. To prevent pressure on demand and asset prices, central banks worldwide may continue expanding the money supply, driving capital into scarce assets such as Bitcoin, whose supply is capped at 21 million coins.

Burnett’s latest report forecasts that Bitcoin will rise to $11 million per coin by the first quarter of 2036 and account for about 12% of the value of global financial assets. The valuation rests on the assumption that AI-driven deflation will force central banks to accelerate monetary easing, while Bitcoin gradually captures store-of-value demand currently held by traditional assets including gold, equities, bonds and real estate.

Strategy, formerly enterprise software company MicroStrategy, has made Bitcoin a core asset in recent years and continued accumulating it through debt and stock issuance. It holds more Bitcoin than any other publicly traded company, so its purchases and Michael Saylor’s price forecasts are often viewed by the market as indicators of institutional confidence.

On July 20, 2026, Strategy said it had spent about $39.83 million to buy 592 Bitcoin at an average price of $67,286 each, raising its total holdings to 717,722 Bitcoin. Despite a weak market and unrealized losses, Executive Chairman Saylor said that if Bitcoin does not go to zero, it will eventually rise to $1 million.