S&P Global Ratings has given Michael Saylor’s Strategy a “B-” credit rating, placing it in the speculative, non-investment-grade territory — often referred to as a “junk bond” — although it said the Bitcoin treasury company’s outlook remains stable.
“We view Strategy’s high bitcoin concentration, narrow business focus, weak risk-adjusted capitalization, and low US dollar liquidity as weaknesses,” the credit rating platform said in a review of Strategy on Monday.
Strategy has accumulated its 640,808 BTC treasury mainly via equity and debt financing. The stable outlook assumes the company will prudently manage convertible debt maturities and maintain preferred stock dividends, potentially through additional debt issuance, it said.
S&P Global highlighted that Strategy faces an “inherent currency mismatch,” with all debt due in US dollars while much of its dollar reserves are allocated to fund its software business, which operates at approximately breakeven in earnings and cash flow.
The credit rating is significant as it marks the first time a Bitcoin‑treasury-focused company has received an S&P Global assessment — establishing a benchmark for TradFi to evaluate the credit risk of companies that center their business models around Bitcoin and crypto.
Strategy is on par with Sky Protocol
Strategy received the same score as decentralized stablecoin issuer Sky Protocol, previously MakerDAO, in August.
S&P Global pointed to Sky Protocol’s high depositor concentration, centralized governance and weak capitalization to justify the B-minus rating.
Strategy’s B-minus rating will need to bump up six levels — to BBB-minus — in order to escape the “junk bond” zone.
The latest rating comes as Strategy was one of the Nasdaq’s best-performing stocks in 2024, rallying 430%. MSTR has, however, retraced 13% so far in 2025, according to Google Finance data.
That includes a 2.27% rise on Monday, indicating that S&P Global’s rating didn’t hurt the company’s share price.
Strategy must increase US liquidity, reduce reliance on debt
While S&P Global said an upgrade in the next 12 months is unlikely, it noted that it could raise the ratings if Strategy improves its US dollar liquidity, eases convertible debt, and continues to demonstrate strong access to capital markets, including when Bitcoin retraces.
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However, S&P Global said there’s a risk that Strategy’s convertible debt may be due at a time of a “severe Bitcoin stress,” forcing them to liquidate some of its Bitcoin at “depressed prices.”
Strategy’s score could also fall lower if its access to capital markets weakens, crunching its ability to raise funds and continue its Bitcoin strategy.
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