- Lead. MSCI finalized a new eligibility framework on 15 October that screens companies for operating-asset substance, putting Strategy (MSTR) and Japan’s Metaplanet at risk of removal from global indexes following the November 30 review.
- Fact. The rule replaces interim restrictions introduced in October 2025 targeting firms with 50% or more of total assets in digital assets; the new screen uses financial ratios rather than a single balance-sheet threshold.
- Stake. JPMorgan estimates Strategy’s exclusion alone could trigger $2.8 billion in selling pressure; if FTSE Russell and S&P Dow Jones follow suit, outflows could reach $8–$11 billion, according to market analysts cited by Investing News Network.
MSCI published its finalized non-operating-business eligibility methodology on Thursday, setting in motion a process that could strip two of the most prominent Bitcoin treasury companies from widely tracked equity indexes. Under the new rules, companies first face an assessment of operating-asset substance; those that fail then undergo five financial ratio tests, and exclusion is triggered when at least four are flagged. A May 2026 simulation using annual filing data flagged Strategy, Metaplanet and Yellow Cake, according to The Block. Ethereum treasury firm SharpLink was placed on a watchlist.
Timeline and Mechanics
Current index constituents are protected by a two-period buffer: they face removal only if they fail the screen in each of their two most recent annual filing periods. Non-constituents are ineligible for new inclusion if they fail in either of the two most recent periods. MSCI will publish its final list of potentially affected companies on 11 November, ahead of implementation at the close of 30 November. The methodology ends what MSCI described as “interim restrictions” introduced in October 2025, which applied a blunter 50%-of-assets digital-holdings threshold.
Strategy’s index-tracking fund holders collectively own approximately 13 million shares, representing 3.1% of the company’s basic outstanding equity — a meaningful but not dominant position. The company says those holders would face forced selling if MSCI proceeds, though it maintains the market impact would be manageable.
Strategy’s Pushback
Executive Chairman Michael Saylor and CEO Phong Le have both objected publicly to the MSCI framework. In a September letter, Strategy argued that its Bitcoin operations qualify as an operating segment under US Generally Accepted Accounting Principles and that exclusion “would have no meaningful impact on Strategy’s business” but “would profoundly harm MSCI’s reputation as a neutral index provider.” The letter called the proposal “discriminatory against digital asset treasuries.”
Bitcoin has been under pressure from macro tightening, and the MSCI decision adds a structural dimension to that pressure: if MSTR is removed, passive funds must sell irrespective of Bitcoin’s price level on the day. The impact on Metaplanet would be felt in Tokyo, where the company has become a notable presence in the Japanese equity market through its Bitcoin treasury strategy. Yellow Cake, which holds physical uranium rather than Bitcoin, is subject to the same rules and faces similar risks under the new framework.