Strategy Slows Bitcoin Buying to 250 BTC as STRC Buybacks Reach $192.4 million

Strategy added 250 bitcoin for $21.5 million in the week to October 11, lifting its holdings to 848,250 BTC, and spent $192.4 million on repurchases of its STRC preferred shares. The gap between the two figures stands out as Cointelegraph counts a second straight weekly drop in the company's bitcoin purchases.

A 250 BTC purchase funded almost entirely by common stock sales

Strategy said on Monday that it bought 250 bitcoin for $21.5 million between October 5 and October 11, according to Decrypt. The coins cost an average of $86,194 each including fees. After the purchase the company holds 848,250 BTC, which Decrypt describes as a new record.

Almost all of the money came from equity. Strategy raised $21 million by issuing roughly 125,000 MSTR common shares under its at-the-market program and paid the remaining $500,000 from cash. Cointelegraph reports the same split, citing an announcement on Strategy's website that covers Monday through Sunday.

Michael Saylor, the company's founder and executive chair, signaled the purchase a day earlier. According to Cointelegraph, his Sunday post read, “There’s always room for more orange.”

Preferred stock buybacks grew while bitcoin buying shrank

Strategy also spent $192.4 million last week buying back STRC, the company's variable-rate preferred stock known as Stretch, according to Decrypt. That covered 1,932,145 shares. It leaves $354.8 million available under its program for preferred buybacks.

Cointelegraph puts repurchases in the preceding week at $176.3 million, so the latest total was higher. Decrypt notes that Strategy sold no preferred stock during the week.

Preferred stock ranks ahead of common stock for dividends and pays a stated rate, which for STRC is variable. A company that repurchases those shares pays holders cash for them, which in general lowers the dividend obligations that remain.

The numbers behind the weekly update

The weekly update contains several figures that together define the position. Each is credited to the outlet that reported it.

• Strategy bought 250 BTC for $21.5 million at an average of $86,194 per coin including fees, according to Decrypt.
• Total holdings stand at 848,250 BTC, acquired for $64 billion at an average of $75,444 per coin, according to Decrypt.
• STRC repurchases totaled $192.4 million, up from $176.3 million the week before, according to Cointelegraph.
• The USD reserve for preferred dividends and debt interest stood at $4.88 billion, and the separate USD cash balance was $640.5 million as of October 11.
• In the third quarter, Strategy acquired 7,218 BTC and sold 5,553 BTC, which left holdings up just 0.2%, Cointelegraph reported.

Where the three outlets agree and where they differ

Decrypt, Cointelegraph and The Block agree on the core numbers: 250 BTC, $21.5 million and a total of 848,250 BTC. They differ in what they add. Decrypt reports the average price paid, the size of the STRC buyback in shares, the make-up of the cash balances and Strategy's stated room to sell bitcoin. Cointelegraph adds the precise prior-week buyback total and the third-quarter purchase and sale totals.

The framing differs more than the facts. Decrypt leads with the record holdings total, while Cointelegraph leads with the slowdown and counts a second straight weekly decline in purchases. According to The Block, the holdings equal about 4% of the 21 million bitcoin maximum supply, worth roughly $71 billion.

Bitcoin sales and cash reserves sit behind the headline

Cointelegraph describes the company's accumulation as slower in recent months, and the third-quarter totals above show that sales ran alongside purchases. Decrypt adds that CEO Phong Le defended selling bitcoin in September as the “right trade,” and that holdings reached a record after a $143 million purchase at the end of that month.

Two cash balances frame the weekly numbers. Decrypt describes the $4.88 billion USD reserve as earmarked to pay preferred dividends and debt interest, while the $640.5 million cash balance covers broader needs such as buying bitcoin. The reserve was first set up with $1.44 billion, and the separate cash balance was created after Strategy raised $2 billion by selling MSTR stock.

Decrypt also flags two items that could shift the picture. Strategy has proposed that dividends on its preferred stock accrue 365 days a year, and it has said sales of as much as $1.25 billion in bitcoin are possible under its digital credit capital framework.

How bitcoin's price frames the week's purchase

CoinGecko lists bitcoin at $82,665, down 0.5% over 24 hours and 4.5% over seven days, against a 6.7% gain across 30 days. The coins Strategy bought last week cost an average of $86,194, which is above that price, while the company's overall average of $75,444 sits below it. The roughly $71 billion value The Block places on the holdings also compares with the $64 billion Decrypt reports as their total cost. No outlet links the size of the week's purchase to price moves, so the comparison is context rather than an explanation.

Open questions for holders and project teams

The first question is whether weekly purchases keep shrinking. Cointelegraph counts two consecutive declines, and the next weekly update will show whether the pattern holds. A second is how much of the remaining $354.8 million in buyback capacity gets used, given that repurchases last week ran well above the bitcoin purchase.

A third is how Strategy handles the proposed 365-day dividend accrual and the bitcoin sale framework of up to $1.25 billion, because either could affect how the reserves and the bitcoin position are used. What would trigger a sale under that framework has not been reported.

The outlets' figures trace back to Strategy's weekly release, so it is the place to confirm purchase prices, share counts and reserve balances. Decrypt also notes that traders on Myriad, a prediction market owned by Decrypt's parent company Dastan, put just a 5% chance on holdings passing one million BTC by the end of the year.

Market snapshot

Asset	Price	24h	7d	Market cap
Bitcoin (BTC)	$82,665	-0.5%	-4.5%	$1.66 trillion

CoinGecko data as of 2026-10-12 (UTC).

FAQ

How much bitcoin does Strategy hold now?

Strategy holds 848,250 BTC after buying 250 BTC for $21.5 million between October 5 and October 11, according to Decrypt and Cointelegraph. Decrypt reports that the total was acquired for $64 billion at an average of $75,444 per coin.

How did Strategy pay for the latest bitcoin purchase?

It raised $21 million by issuing roughly 125,000 MSTR common shares under its at-the-market program and paid the remaining $500,000 from cash, according to Decrypt. Cointelegraph reports the same split.

What is STRC and how much did Strategy buy back?

STRC is Strategy's variable-rate Stretch preferred stock, according to Decrypt. The company repurchased 1,932,145 shares for $192.4 million last week, which leaves $354.8 million available under its buyback program.

Sources

• Decrypt: Strategy Scoops Up $21.5M in Bitcoin, Buys Back $192M in STRC (2026-10-12)
• Cointelegraph: Strategy adds 250 Bitcoin as holdings reach 848,250 BTC (2026-10-12)
• The Block: ‘There’s always room for more orange’: Michael Saylor’s Strategy scoops up another 250 bitcoin for $21.5 million as holdings reach 848,250 BTC (2026-10-12)
• CoinGecko (market data)