Publicly traded asset manager Strive, Inc. has priced an upsized 630 million USD preferred stock offering to fund a massive new wave of Bitcoin purchases, just days after a 235 million USD buying spree pushed its corporate treasury to 35,595 BTC and vaulted the firm past MARA Holdings into fourth place among public corporate holders.
By Sarah Park | October 16, 2026
The Hook: A 630 Million USD War Chest and a Top-Four Bitcoin Crown
While retail traders spent the past week worrying about inflation reports and choppy price action, one Wall Street firm has been treating the market pullback like a clearance sale. Strive, Inc. (trading on the Nasdaq under the ticker ASST), the asset management and Bitcoin treasury company co-founded by Vivek Ramaswamy and led by CEO Matt Cole, announced via GlobeNewswire on October 15, 2026, that it priced a massive 630 million USD initial public offering of perpetual preferred stock designed to buy even more Bitcoin.
Why should everyday crypto investors care about a corporate stock offering? Because when a single public company raises hundreds of millions of dollars specifically to buy Bitcoin on the open market, it creates a giant, steady buyer that absorbs supply regardless of short-term fear. With Bitcoin currently trading at 81,277 USD—down 1.3 percent over the past 24 hours alongside Ethereum at 2,414.65 USD (down 1.2 percent) and Solana at 103.95 USD (down 1.8 percent)—Strive is positioning itself to deploy fresh capital right as prices sit below its recent purchase averages.
Due to strong investor demand, Strive expanded the offering of its 15.00 percent Series A Perpetual SATS Preferred Stock (ticker: SATS) from 5 million shares to 7 million shares. Priced at 90 USD per share against a 100 USD stated par value, the deal generates approximately 630 million USD in gross proceeds, representing 700 million USD in notional value. The offering is scheduled to officially settle on October 20, 2026, giving Strive a massive new war chest to expand its balance sheet.
On-Chain Evidence: Inside Strive’s 35,595 BTC Accumulation Spree
Before announcing this latest 630 million USD raise, Strive had already spent the first half of October executing one of the fastest corporate accumulation sprees of the year. According to regulatory filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and treasury tracking data from BitcoinTreasuries.net and The Block, the company completed two back-to-back mega-purchases in less than two weeks.
Think of Strive‘s recent funding method like early investors cashing in pre-arranged discount coupons—known on Wall Street as warrants—which hands the company fresh cash to spend immediately. Instead of sitting on that cash in a low-interest bank account, management converted it straight into digital gold.
- October 5 to October 9 Purchase — Strive acquired 3,311 BTC for approximately 280 million USD at an average price of roughly 84,500 USD per coin, funded heavily by investors exercising 208 million USD in warrants.
- October 12 to October 13 Purchase — According to an SEC Form 8-K filing, the company bought another 2,822 BTC for roughly 235 million USD at an average cost of about 83,266 USD per coin, including fees and expenses.
- 369.2 Million USD Warrant Clearing — Alongside the mid-month purchase, Strive reported that investors exercised remaining traditional private-investment warrants, generating roughly 369.2 million USD in expected gross proceeds and eliminating future share-dilution overhang for regular common stockholders.
- 35,595 BTC Total Treasury — Combined, these purchases pushed Strive‘s total corporate holdings to 35,595 BTC, narrowly overtaking mining giant MARA Holdings (at 35,577 BTC) by 18 coins to become the fourth-largest public Bitcoin treasury company in the world.
- 630 Million USD SATS Preferred Raise — Priced on October 15, 2026, at 90 USD per share across 7 million shares, this new capital raise is earmarked primarily for buying additional Bitcoin and Bitcoin-related products.
By reaching 35,595 BTC, Strive now trails only three corporate giants globally: Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy), Metaplanet, and Twenty One Capital. At today’s Bitcoin price of 81,277 USD, Strive‘s existing stash alone is worth nearly 2.9 billion USD—and that is before a single dollar from the new SATS stock offering hits the market next week.
The Core Conflict: Paying 15 Percent Yield to Buy a Volatile Asset
How does a company convince cautious Wall Street income investors to hand over 630 million USD during a week when spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds saw heavy outflows? The answer lies in financial engineering—specifically, offering an eye-popping annual payout.
Preferred stock works like a VIP dividend ticket: holders do not get the same voting rights or unlimited upside as common stock owners, but they stand ahead of regular shareholders in line to get paid steady cash dividends. Strive‘s new SATS preferred shares sit junior on the company’s balance sheet to its existing variable-rate preferred stock, which trades under the ticker SATA. Because SATS investors are taking a second-in-line seat behind SATA holders, Strive is compensating them with a hefty 15.00 percent fixed annual dividend based on the 100 USD stated value of each share.
Because institutional buyers were able to buy the shares at a discounted initial offering price of 90 USD, that 15 USD annual payout per share works out to an effective yield of roughly 16.7 percent, according to analysis from CryptoBriefing. Regular dividend payments are scheduled to begin on November 9, 2026. To calm any nerves about how a Bitcoin company will pay cash dividends if crypto prices stay flat, Strive pledged to deposit 22.50 USD per share—the exact equivalent of the first 18 months of dividends—into a dedicated cash reserve account as soon as the deal closes on October 20, 2026. Think of that reserve like a pre-paid escrow account that guarantees the first year and a half of payouts no matter what Bitcoin‘s price does in the meantime.
Here is the core tension that divides analysts: paying a 15 percent annual dividend is expensive. For this strategy to pay off over the long run after the 18-month reserve runs out, Bitcoin‘s long-term annual growth rate must comfortably beat the cost of servicing those preferred shares. Supporters argue that setting an 18-month cash cushion removes any risk of forced Bitcoin sales during a downturn, giving the market plenty of time to recover and rally higher. Skeptics counter that layering high-yield dividend obligations onto a volatile balance sheet raises the stakes if the crypto market enters a prolonged multi-year freeze.
Market Implications: What Corporate Buying Means for Your Portfolio
For everyday investors holding Bitcoin in a personal wallet or retirement account, Strive‘s aggressive playbook changes the supply-and-demand math in three important ways.
First, corporate treasuries act like one-way vaults. When short-term traders buy spot ETFs, they often sell a week later if tech stocks drop or inflation numbers look hot—as seen last week when spot Bitcoin ETFs shed roughly 681 million USD in net outflows. Corporate treasury companies like Strive and Strategy, by contrast, raise permanent capital specifically to lock Bitcoin away for years. Their stated goal is to increase the amount of Bitcoin held per share, meaning those coins are effectively removed from liquid circulation.
Second, the timing of the October 20, 2026 settlement means hundreds of millions of dollars in fresh spot buying power is about to enter the market right around the 81,277 USD price level. Having bought 3,311 BTC at an average of 84,500 USD and 2,822 BTC at an average of 83,266 USD earlier this month, Strive now has the opportunity to lower its average cost basis by deploying its new proceeds while prices are slightly discounted.
Third, the rise of high-yield crypto preferred stocks like SATS and SATA opens a bridge to traditional income investors—such as pension funds, endowments, and retirees—who are barred from buying raw cryptocurrency directly or who demand steady cash flow. By packaging Bitcoin treasury growth into a dividend-paying stock on the Nasdaq, Strive is funneling bond-market and dividend-investor money straight into the Bitcoin ecosystem.
The Verdict: High-Octane Yield Meets Relentless Spot Demand
Strive‘s leap past MARA Holdings to claim the fourth-largest public Bitcoin treasury at 35,595 BTC proves that corporate accumulation is no longer a one-company show dominated solely by Strategy. A fierce competition has broken out among public firms to see who can lock up the largest share of Bitcoin‘s fixed 21 million supply using creative Wall Street financing.
For regular investors, you do not need to buy complex preferred stocks to benefit from this trend. When a corporate buyer upsizes a stock offering to 630 million USD and explicitly earmarks the cash for spot Bitcoin purchases after the October 20, 2026 settlement date, every person who already holds Bitcoin benefits from the added buying pressure. Keep a close eye on SEC Form 8-K filings over the final ten days of October—because Strive just loaded the chamber for its biggest purchase yet.
The cryptocurrency market remains highly volatile. This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice.
630 million in preferred stock just to stack more BTC. Strive passed MARA at 35,595 coins and clearly has no plan to stop. Perpetual preferred though, that dividend bill gets interesting if bitcoin chops sideways for a year.
^ perpetual preferred is the part nobody is pricing. cheap-ish financing now, permanent coupon later. still bullish on the 630M raise tho
Remember when MARA was the default treasury proxy? Strive just lapped them at 35,595 BTC and immediately raised 630M more. The arms race is real.
give it a quarter, MARA will re-lever and take the crown back. these two are just gonna trade the lead all cycle
630M in preferred stock just to stack more btc. cole is speedrunning the balance sheet playbook mara took a decade to fumble
35,595 BTC ahead of MARA is wild for a company that basically restarted from an asset manager shell. The preferred structure worries me a bit on dilution though
preferred dividends on 630M have to get paid before common sees anything. if btc chops sideways for a year asst holders eat that cost
Every treasury co announcing raises the same week now. Top signal or the machine just getting started, no in between