Web3 infrastructure provider Metaplanet’s Tokyo-listed stock shot up nearly 90% in two days after the announcement of a partnership with Sora Ventures, Morgan Creek Capital’s Mark Yusko, and others to add $6.65 million in Bitcoin to its balance sheet.
The business, once known as Red Planet and operated low-cost hotels before becoming a Web3 software developer, stated that it wants to reduce its exposure to the Japanese yen.
In an update to shareholders, the company stated that the yen has suffered due to Japan’s generation-long low-interest rates, which have undermined its standing as a major global currency. The first-rate increase in seventeen years occurred in March when the central bank raised short-term interest rates from minus 0.1% to 0-0.1%.
It said, “The Company’s decision to incorporate Bitcoin into its treasury assets is driven by a multifaceted understanding of its potential as a hedge against inflation, a tool for macroeconomic resilience, and a basis for long-term capital appreciation.”
Additionally, the approach is similar to that of MicroStrategy which declared in 2020 that it would begin increasing its Bitcoin holdings. Since then, the price of its stock has frequently followed the changes in the value of Bitcoin, indicating the attitude of investors toward the cryptocurrency market.
MicroStrategy is now the largest corporate owner of Bitcoin holding more than 214,000 valued at more than $15 billion, according to the data of bitcointreasuries.net
Jason Fang, managing partner and co-founder of Sora Ventures, was involved in the collaboration to include Bitcoin in Metaplanet’s balance sheet.
In a post on X, Fang emphasized it as a means for Japanese investors to gain exposure to cryptocurrency through a publicly traded company rather than holding the asset directly, which carries a hefty tax on unrealized gains in cryptocurrency.
Since it was first proposed, lawmakers have discussed and changed this tax, making it a contentious policy. Japan’s National Tax Agency declared in June 2023 that tokens issued by cryptocurrency startups would not be subject to the regulations.
Also Read: MicroStrategy Stashes 9245 More Bitcoins Worth $623 Millions
