One in Four Public Bitcoin Treasuries Now Trade Below NAV: K33 Report Signals Market Stress
Bitcoin's corporate champions are feeling the squeeze—hard. A stunning one-quarter of all public company Bitcoin treasuries have slipped below their net asset value, according to fresh data from crypto analytics firm K33. That's not just a dip; it's a distress signal flashing red across boardrooms from MicroStrategy to smaller players.
When NAV Goes Negative
Trading below net asset value means the market values these companies less than the Bitcoin they hold. It screams skepticism—investors doubt management's ability to deploy capital, hedge risk, or simply outpace plain old HODLing. For firms that pitched Bitcoin treasuries as a bold innovation, that's a brutal reality check.
Wall Street's Cold Shoulder
Traditional finance never fully embraced the corporate Bitcoin experiment, and now it's shrugging—or worse, shorting. These discounts reveal a gap between crypto true believers and institutional pragmatists. Maybe it's the volatility, the regulatory haze, or just the classic finance cynicism: if it looks like a gamble and quacks like a gamble, it probably shouldn't be on the balance sheet.
What's Next?
This isn't necessarily a death knell. Discounts can narrow, Bitcoin can rally, and companies can adapt. But for now, it's a wake-up call. Innovation meets inertia—and the market's voting with its wallet. As one sardonic trader put it: 'Turns out, running a business is harder than buying crypto and hoping.' Ouch.
K33: BTC NAV Gap Limits Capital Raising for Treasury Firms
K33’s Head of Research, Vetle Lunde, warned that this gap is already limiting the ability of some firms to raise capital.
“Issuing shares below NAV is dilutive,” he said, explaining that companies trading under the value of their Bitcoin effectively give away more ownership than they receive in return.
The most dramatic case is NAKA, the merger vehicle of KindlyMD and Nakamoto Holdings, which has lost 96% of its market value from peak and now trades at just 0.7x NAV, down from 75x.
Other firms currently below their NAV include Tether-backed Twenty One, Semler Scientific, and The Smarter Web Company.
K33 notes that while the average NAV multiple across treasury firms remains at 2.8, that’s down from 3.76 in April, and the spread is widening.
Larger players like MicroStrategy still enjoy premiums, while smaller firms are slipping below water.
BTC accumulation is also slowing. In September, treasury firms added just 1,428 BTC per day, the weakest pace since May.
BTC Treasury stocks just went through a full-blown 4 year Bitcoin cycle in 5 months lol.
First up 5x, then down 70%.
It's not only "amplified Bitcoin" in terms of price, but also in terms of time.
Anyone who survives this can literally survive anything. pic.twitter.com/ceO1K5Ai24
Lunde called the declining premiums “rational,” noting that many of these companies face high advisory fees, insider incentives, and complicated capital structures.
Exceptions, he added, exist when firms can leverage their BTC holdings in other business areas.
Public companies now hold over 1 million BTC, but K33 suggests that spot ETFs and retail flows are taking over as the main drivers of demand.
On the derivatives front, CME Bitcoin futures have returned to modest premiums over offshore perpetuals, suggesting a more balanced market.
Still, funding rates remain elevated, with Leveraged traders maintaining a strong long bias, a setup that could lead to a squeeze if momentum shifts.
GD Culture Stock Sinks 28% After $875M Bitcoin Acquisition Deal
GD Culture Group shares plummeted 28% after announcing an $875 million share-based acquisition of 7,500 Bitcoin from Pallas Capital Holding.
The livestreaming and e-commerce firm will issue 39.2 million new shares to complete the deal, shifting its focus toward building a diversified crypto asset reserve.
CEO Xiaojian Wang framed the MOVE as a strategic pivot to tap into rising institutional interest in Bitcoin.
Investors, however, responded with caution. The stock drop reflects concerns over significant share dilution and the risks of speculative crypto exposure. G
DC’s market cap now sits at $117.4 million, down 97% from its 2021 peak. Analysts, including VanEck, have previously warned that funding crypto purchases with stock offerings can erode shareholder value if the shares trade below the asset value.
Michael Saylor’s Strategy now holds 636,505 BTC, making it the largest corporate holder by a wide margin.
Bitcoin mining firm MARA Holdings remains in second with 52,477 BTC, after adding 705 BTC in August.
But new entrants are gaining ground. XXI, founded by Strike CEO Jack Mallers, has amassed 43,514 BTC, while the Bitcoin Standard Treasury Company holds 30,021 BTC.
