MicroStrategy CEO Steps Down After $917 Million Hit on Bitcoin Investments

The business intelligence vendor announced on Tuesday that Michael Saylor will take on a new role.

Separation of Chairman and CEO Roles

Saylor will now focus on overseeing the company’s Bitcoin purchase plan along with innovation and long-term corporate strategy.

"As Executive Chairman I will be able to focus more on our Bitcoin acquisition strategy and related bitcoin advocacy initiatives, while Phong will be empowered as CEO to manage overall corporate operations,” Saylor said.

Phong Le, MicroStrategy’s president, will take over the CEO role. He has served in various executive positions since joining the company in 2015, before becoming its president in 2020.

The Background

The move comes after MicroStrategy reported worse results from the Wall Street estimates. The revenue coming in sat at $122.1 million compared to an expected $126 million. The company lost $918.1 million in the quarter, with $917.8 million attributable to its Bitcoin holdings.

In the past two years, MicroStrategy has made some major Bitcoin acquisitions. At the moment, it is the world’s biggest corporate holder of the popular cryptocurrency. According to Saylor’s most recent update, the company has 129,666 Bitcoin.

Also, MicroStrategy was the first publicly traded company to rely on Bitcoin as its primary treasury reserve asset.

Crypto Winter Continues

Cryptocurrencies continue to suffer a brutal comedown, losing over $2 trillion in value since the heights of 2021.

Bitcoin currently sits at $23.393,00 while its value last year exceeded $65,000.

Bill Gates recently said that crypto and NFTs are based on “greater fool theory” and that he holds no positions in blockchain technology.