MSCI Targets Bitcoin Treasury Firms with Proposed Index Eligibility Overhaul

MSCI has launched a public consultation that could strip Strategy (MSTR) and Metaplanet from its flagship Global Investable Market Indexes (GIMI). The proposed MSCI non-operating company screen would exclude companies accumulating non-operating assets rather than generating cash from core business activities. Both Bitcoin treasury firms fail key financial eligibility tests under the proposal.

The development could trigger up to $2 billion in forced passive fund outflows if the rules are finalized in November 2026. The proposed MSCI screen applies a two-step test: a Core Screen checking whether operating assets exceed 50% of total assets, followed by an Exclusion Screen that flags companies failing at least four of five financial ratios.

Strategy reportedly fails all five financial screens based on its FY2025 filings. Metaplanet posted $20M in H1 2026 profit despite the BTC price crash, but its capital-raising model is precisely the structure MSCI's screen is designed to identify. Strategy has continued aggressively raising capital to fund its Bitcoin accumulation.

The stakes are clear for investors: earlier projections pegged potential forced selling at $2.5B, $2.8B for Strategy alone, now estimated at $1.8B, $2.0B in potential outflows based on current pricing.