Strategy bought no bitcoin and sold none during the week of October 19–25, the company disclosed Monday. Instead it spent $204.9 million repurchasing STRC preferred stock, the latest in a series of buybacks that have replaced coin purchases this year. The company still holds 848,517 BTC, acquired for $64.02 billion at an average of $75,446 per coin.
Bitcoin traded near $80,000 on Monday, October 26, after slipping into the low $79,000s over the weekend — a level it hadn't touched in more than a month. At that price Strategy's stack carries a paper gain of roughly $3.9 billion.
Why buy back STRC instead of coins
STRC is a preferred stock with a variable dividend built to trade near its $100 face value. Strategy is retiring that stated value at $86.52 on the dollar. Every $100 of preferred claim it extinguishes costs $86.52 in cash, which shrinks the claim faster than it drains the balance sheet and lifts net bitcoin per share. For a company whose equity story rests on coins-per-share, that arithmetic matters.
This isn't a one-off. The company has paused bitcoin purchases several times in 2026 and redirected money toward preferred buybacks. In September it repurchased $176 million of STRC in a single week and doubled its digital credit securities repurchase program from $1 billion to $2 billion.
A buffer that covers the coupons
Strategy closed the week with $4.83 billion in cash, enough to cover preferred dividends and debt interest. That reserve buys the company room to keep buying back preferred without touching its coin stack.
The catch is the funding mix. Buyback capacity depends on preferred shares trading below par and on cash raised from common stock sales. That mix has shifted toward stock sales this year, which means the buyback engine is tied as much to equity markets as to the discount on STRC.
No word on when buying resumes
Strategy has offered no timetable for restarting bitcoin purchases. The company built the largest corporate bitcoin treasury in the world by selling stock and convertible debt; those proceeds went into coins. Right now the flow is running the other way — cash into preferred retirement, not into the market.
For holders, the near-term question is whether STRC keeps trading below par. If it does, the discount math favors more buybacks. If it doesn't, the preferred retirement slows and the company's next lever is the one it has used all year: selling more common stock. Either way, the market won't get a fresh purchase disclosure until next Monday's filing, unless Strategy changes course before then.
