Metaplanet sold 10,000 bitcoin during the third quarter for ¥124.7 billion — roughly $790 million — then turned around and bought 11,000 BTC for almost ¥150 billion. The round trip cost the company money: it sold at slightly lower prices and repurchased higher.
As of September 30, Metaplanet's stash stood at 44,000 BTC, up 1,000 coins net from the maneuver. The point wasn't trading profit. It was proof.
Why sell and buy back the same coin
Metaplanet is chasing a credit rating. To get one, the company needs to convince ratings agencies and fixed-income investors that its bitcoin treasury is genuinely liquid — that it can be converted to cash on demand, not just marked to market on a slide.
So it ran a live test. The cash raised from the 10,000 BTC sale exceeded the company's roughly ¥122.4 billion in net bonds, borrowings, and other relevant liabilities. That's the headline number Metaplanet wants on the record.
Notably, it didn't repay those debts. The goal was to show it could, if it had to. The proceeds sat in cash temporarily before going back into bitcoin.
The repurchase of 11,000 BTC — adding a net 1,000 coins — was the follow-through. A company that sells its treasury and stays in cash hasn't proven liquidity. A company that sells, holds the cash, and then buys back more has demonstrated the full cycle works.
The tax angle
There's a side effect. The bitcoin stash generated a US tax capital loss that could potentially create a deferred tax asset of approximately $97 million. Metaplanet stressed the figure is preliminary and unaudited, so treat it as a flag, not a number in the bank.
A deferred tax asset only has value if there's future profit to offset. Given the company's expansion plans, that's plausible. But it's an accounting footnote to the main event, not the reason for the trade.
Superplanet and the American push
The liquidity demonstration ties into a broader financing strategy: bonds, preferred stock, and a credit rating that would open the door to both. Metaplanet recently put 2,100 BTC and $2.5 million into Superplanet, a US bitcoin treasury platform carved out of Super League Enterprise.
That moves part of the balance sheet into a US vehicle and signals where Metaplanet thinks the next round of capital is coming from. A Tokyo-listed company with a US treasury arm has more financing levers than one without.
It's an expensive way to make a point. Selling 10,000 BTC and buying 11,000 back at higher prices means the spread between the two trades is a real cost, not a paper one. Metaplanet is paying for credibility.
What the rating agencies will want next
The 44,000 BTC figure as of September 30 is the baseline. What matters now is whether agencies accept a single quarter's demonstration as sufficient evidence of liquidity, or whether they demand a longer track record of monetization.
Metaplanet has said the $97 million deferred tax asset is preliminary. Its audit and any formal rating process will test that claim. Watch for the next financing announcement — a bond or preferred stock sale would be the clearest signal the strategy worked.
