Metaplanet stopped buying Bitcoin for months, concealing a ruthless arbitrage strategy that puts retail to shame

Tokyo-listed Metaplanet halted direct Bitcoin purchases after October 1st, not due to lost conviction, but because its Market Net Asset Value (MNAV) dipped below 1.0, signaling its stock traded at a discount to its underlying Bitcoin value. This created an arbitrage opportunity where buying back discounted shares was mathematically superior to open-market BTC purchases. To capitalize, Metaplanet secured a $100 million Bitcoin-backed loan to fund future pullbacks and established a $500 million credit line for an aggressive share-buyback program, effectively 'looping' assets like crypto-native funds. This strategic pivot was authorized by shareholders in a December EGM, which included accounting maneuvers to free up capital and increased authorized share counts for rapid scaling. The strategy gained legitimacy when Norway's $2 trillion sovereign wealth fund, Norges Bank Investment Management, supported the restructuring, signaling institutional acceptance of Bitcoin treasury strategies. Metaplanet has now transitioned from a simple buyer to a financial engineer using corporate finance tools to aggressively pursue its goal of holding 100,000 BTC.

(Source：CryptoSlate)