MSCI Moves to Exclude Bitcoin-Heavy Strategy From Global Index

MSCI is proceeding with a proposal that would bar Strategy, a company whose balance sheet is dominated by Bitcoin, from its global equity benchmark. The index provider said Thursday it will "implement the proposal to define and classify non-operating companies as ineligible for inclusion in the MSCI Global Investable Market Index." Strategy, a Bitcoin treasury company, had strongly criticized the idea, calling it "misleading" and "flawed." MSCI said the plan would proceed "as outlined in the consultation paper announced on August 3, 2026, with minor modifications." The changes will be introduced as part of the November 2026 index review and take effect after the close on Nov. 30, 2026. The decision does not remove Strategy from the MSCI Global Investable Market Index right away, though later reviews could ultimately end with the company being dropped. Exclusion would shrink the pool of institutional investors able or willing to hold the stock. Strategy did not immediately comment on MSCI's decision. In August, the company said of the proposal: "Bitcoin doesn't need MSCI. Strategy doesn't either." In 2025, MSCI proposed excluding companies whose digital asset holdings account for 50% or more of total assets from its indices. Strategy, formerly MicroStrategy, is an enterprise software company that pivoted to buying and holding Bitcoin in 2020. It first bought the cryptocurrency to protect shareholders, then kept adding to the position, and is now the largest corporate Bitcoin holder with 848,250 BTC, worth $69.2 billion at current prices. Investors can gain increased exposure to Bitcoin's price by buying MicroStrategy stock (MSTR) on Nasdaq. On Friday, the shares fell more than 6%.