Strategy expands digital credit securities buyback program to $3 billion
Key Facts
Strategy expanded its digital credit securities buyback program to $3 billion, according to its disclosure issued on October 19, 2026, as it continued buying bitcoin. The company announced repurchases of about $193 million of its STRC preferred shares, alongside the acquisition of 267 bitcoin. The move combines an expansion of the securities buyback program with further additions of the cryptocurrency to the company's treasury. In its previous update, dated October 12, Strategy had announced repurchases of about $192 million of the same preferred shares. It also announced the acquisition of 250 bitcoin at the time, compared with the larger amount in the latest disclosure. The announced value of share repurchases thus rose modestly from the previous update, alongside an increase in the amount of bitcoin purchased.
The latest transactions extend purchases and buybacks the company announced during September and October, with the size of each activity varying between disclosures. In its October 5 announcement, Strategy reported acquiring 334 bitcoin and repurchasing about $176 million of STRC. The bitcoin amount in that announcement was larger than in the latest update, while the value of preferred share repurchases was lower. Before that, the company announced on September 28 that it had acquired 1,665 bitcoin while repurchasing about $152 million of preferred shares. In its September 21 disclosure, its purchases totaled 950 bitcoin, while STRC repurchases reached about $174 million. A comparison of those transactions shows the company continued both activities, with the value of share repurchases rising in successive October announcements.
The buybacks fall under a capital management framework Strategy announced in June, which the company says allows it to manage its securities more actively. Chief Executive Phong Le described the approach at the time, saying: "Strategy is moving from one-way capital issuance to active capital management." The company linked preferred securities repurchases to their trading at a significant discount to stated value. It said buying these securities at those levels could lead to "lower expected annual dividend payments." The company thus includes reducing future dividend payments among the financial reasons for the buybacks. The announced framework covers repurchases of outstanding securities, alongside the securities issuance activity the chief executive cited when explaining the shift in capital management policy.
Under the STRC buyback policy announced in July, Strategy ties the scale of its intervention to the price at which the preferred shares trade relative to their stated value. The policy calls for increasing the pace of repurchases as the discount deepens, then reducing it as trading approaches that value. In the same policy announcement, management said it would recommend maintaining the annual dividend rate at 12.00%. It linked continuation of that recommendation to the shares demonstrating stable and healthy trading near $100 per share. STRC dividends are subject to board approval, according to the policy announced by the company. Strategy stressed that these dividends "are not guaranteed," making management's recommendation on the rate separate from the board's decision to approve payments.
On financing, Strategy's policy distinguishes between the dollar reserve and the dollar cash line item, while restricting the use of the reserve for buybacks. According to the official statement issued on October 12, the dollar reserve balance stood at about $4.88 billion on October 11. On the same date, dollar cash totaled about $640.5 million, a separate line item from the reserve announced by the company. The STRC buyback policy states that the company is not authorized to use the dollar reserve to fund purchases of these preferred shares. This restriction places the reserve outside the funds permitted for this purpose under the announced policy. The distinction between the two items accompanies the company's expansion of securities repurchases as it continues executing the bitcoin purchases reported in its updates.
Alongside the management of preferred securities, Michael Saylor reaffirmed Strategy's continued commitment to holding bitcoin in its treasury when the capital framework was announced. He said the company "remains committed to bitcoin as its primary treasury reserve asset." The digital credit securities buyback program has no fixed expiration date, according to the framework announced by the company. On upcoming financial disclosures, Strategy set October 29, 2026, as the date for announcing its third-quarter results. The results will be released after U.S. markets close, according to the company's earnings announcement. Strategy will hold a live video webinar for investors on the same day, starting at 5:00 p.m. Eastern time, alongside the announcement of its financial results.