JPMorgan Increases Bitcoin Bets as Strategy Faces Fresh MSCI Headwinds

JPMorgan Increases Strategy and Bitcoin ETF Exposure

JPMorgan boosted its investments in Strategy and U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs during the third quarter, expanding its crypto-related holdings before the latest market downturn and MSCI’s decision to remove Strategy from key stock indexes.

The bank reported holding 848,932 shares of Strategy, valued at approximately $131.3 million, as of September 30. This was a 36% increase from the 624,387 shares disclosed in its previous quarterly filing.

Its investment in BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) also grew, reaching 11.4 million shares worth approximately $540 million. At the end of June, JPMorgan held 10.4 million IBIT shares valued at $355.7 million.

Although the share count increased by 9.6%, the position’s market value climbed by around 52%. Combined, the bank’s Strategy and IBIT investments totaled approximately $671 million.

JPMorgan also disclosed smaller holdings in the Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust and Bitwise Bitcoin ETF. However, its portfolio included significant put and call options, suggesting that some of its crypto exposure may be tied to hedging and derivatives positions rather than direct bullish bets on Bitcoin.

The latest figures reflect the bank’s holdings at the end of September, before the subsequent cryptocurrency market sell-off intensified.

MSCI Decision Raises Selling Risks for Strategy

The expansion of JPMorgan’s Strategy holdings comes as the company faces potential pressure from MSCI’s index changes. The index provider confirmed that Strategy will be removed from the MSCI USA Index after the market closes on November 30. Its removal will also affect the MSCI World and MSCI ACWI indexes.

The move could force passive funds that track these benchmarks to sell their Strategy shares to align their portfolios with the revised indexes.

JPMorgan previously projected that the exclusion could generate approximately $2.8 billion in selling pressure. The potential impact could become larger if additional index providers introduce similar restrictions.

For Michael Saylor’s company, the decision creates another challenge for its Bitcoin-focused corporate treasury model, which relies on continuously accumulating the digital asset.

Bitcoin Drops Below $69,000 as Crypto Liquidations Surge

Bitcoin has faced renewed selling pressure, falling beneath $69,000 and reaching its lowest price since August.

The sharp decline triggered around $1.6 billion in cryptocurrency liquidations over 24 hours. More than $1.3 billion came from long positions, showing how heavily leveraged bullish traders were affected by the sudden market downturn.

JPMorgan’s latest filing provides insight into its cryptocurrency-related investments before these developments unfolded. While the bank increased its positions in Strategy and Bitcoin ETFs during the third quarter, its exposure to options and other derivatives suggests that its overall market positioning may be more complex than the reported shareholdings alone indicate.