Strategy, one of the largest corporate holders of bitcoin, has openly opposed MSCI's proposal to tighten the rules for including issuers in its indices. In an official statement, company representatives called the initiative "discriminatory and arbitrary," emphasizing that it creates a dangerous precedent for companies actively diversifying their assets.
The essence of MSCI's proposal is that if less than half of a company's assets are not directly related to its core business, it may be subject to additional scrutiny. In the worst case, this would lead to exclusion from index baskets, automatically triggering capital outflows from passive funds and institutional investors that track these benchmarks.
Particularly alarming is the fact that in a test application of the new criteria, Strategy and Japan's Metaplanet — both companies whose strategy involves significant investments in the first cryptocurrency — were the ones flagged for exclusion. At the same time, SharpLink, whose asset structure also raises questions, was placed on a watchlist. This clearly demonstrates that the new rules target players using bitcoin as a treasury reserve asset.
Currently, MSCI continues to collect feedback from market participants, which will last until September 30. A final decision on changing the methodology is planned to be announced by October 16. Given the scale of MSCI's influence on global investment flows, the outcome of this dispute will be an important signal for the entire cryptocurrency sector.
In my analysis, such initiatives are an attempt by classical financial institutions to curb the growing influence of digital assets on corporate balance sheets. However, this approach looks shortsighted: instead of protecting investors, it creates artificial barriers for innovative business models. If MSCI does not reconsider its position, we may see a wave of appeals to regulators and a legislative review of index formation rules.