A new filing by the National Center for Public Policy Research (NCPPR) over the Bitcoin investment strategy has raised dust between Microsoft’s leadership board and its shareholders, requiring both parties to vote for or against the proposal in December 2024.
NCPPR, a self-acclaimed conservative think tank in the U.S., recommended that Microsoft consider investing at least 1% of its total assets in Bitcoin.
More than that, the NCPPR claims that Bitcoin is an “excellent, if not the best, hedge against inflation,” thereby urging shareholders to support the most popular digital currency.
Microsoft Love-Hate For Bitcoin
The tech giant has taken an adamant position against the proposal, stressing that such an assessment was unnecessary. This highlighted that since the company already has “strong and appropriate processes to manage and diversify” its investment, adding Bitcoin to its corporate balance sheet is not “necessary.”
Although the tech company has yet to add Bitcoin to its asset holding, Microsoft has integrated Bitcoin and blockchain technology into its ecosystem in other ways. For example, Microsoft is one of the first tech firms to accept Bitcoin payments for its digital product.
The recent proposal comes when institutional investors are massively taking an interest in cryptocurrency. Asset manager BlackRock, for instance, recently added 12,272 BTC worth $742 million to its BTC holding, bringing its total holding to a total of 369,822 BTC, approximately $23.2 billion.
In addition to BlackRock, which holds 5.7% as a stakeholder with Microsoft, other institutional investors like Fidelity and Microsoft’s former CEO, Steve Ballmer, will vote on the proposal in December.
Who Will Win?
Results from the vote to a large extent, will determine how other institutional investors and possibly tech firms will come closer or farther from cryptocurrency.
It is currently uncertain whether Microsoft shareholders will vote to add Bitcoin to 1% of the company’s total corporate assets or side with the Microsoft leadership board to exclude the digital asset.
