MSCI Considers Excluding Bitcoin-Heavy Companies from Indexes Amid CEO Pushback

• MSCI’s proposal targets digital asset treasury companies (DATs) to maintain index neutrality.

• The consultation period ends December 31, 2025, with decisions expected in January 2026.

• MicroStrategy holds over 660,000 BTC, representing a significant portion of its assets, per recent filings.

MSCI crypto exclusion proposal sparks debate: Learn why experts like MicroStrategy’s Phong Le argue it’s flawed and could stifle innovation in digital assets. Stay informed on index changes. (148 characters)

What is MSCI’s Proposal on Excluding Crypto-Heavy Companies?

MSCI’s crypto exclusion initiative involves consulting the investment community on barring companies where digital assets exceed 50% of their balance sheets from its indexes. This targets firms like digital asset treasury companies (DATs) that hold substantial Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies. The goal is to ensure indexes reflect operating businesses rather than investment vehicles, but critics argue it undermines crypto’s legitimacy as an asset class. The consultation, announced in October 2025, aims for neutrality but has drawn sharp rebuttals from industry leaders.

How Does This Impact Bitcoin Treasury Strategies?

MicroStrategy CFO Phong Le, speaking on the Schwab Network, described the MSCI crypto exclusion as “misinformed and misguided.” He highlighted that traditional firms like Chevron, with over half its assets in oil, or Weyerhaeuser with significant timber holdings, face no such scrutiny. Le emphasized MicroStrategy’s status as an operating company, founded by Michael Saylor in 1989 and public since 1998, not a mere fund. According to MSCI’s consultation document, DATs “exhibit characteristics similar to investment funds,” which are ineligible for inclusion. However, Le countered that MicroStrategy employs hundreds and generates revenue from software services, underscoring its operational nature.

Feedback from the investment community has been mixed. Some stakeholders support the exclusion to avoid volatility in indexes tracking equities, while others, including MicroStrategy, warn it biases against emerging asset classes. Data from MicroStrategy’s latest filings shows its Bitcoin holdings surpassing 660,000 BTC after a $962 million purchase, valued at billions, representing a core treasury strategy. This approach has boosted the company’s market cap, demonstrating crypto’s role in corporate finance. Experts like Charlie Sherry, head of finance at BTC Markets, noted that MSCI typically consults only on changes it’s inclined to implement, per his comments in financial media last month.

The proposal’s timeline is tight: open until December 31, 2025, with conclusions public on January 15, 2026, and changes effective in February. This could affect trillions in passive investments tracking MSCI indexes, which influence $60 trillion in assets globally. Le argued in MicroStrategy’s formal letter to MSCI that restricting index inclusion equates to stifling innovation, comparing it to barring telecom firms from building cell towers in the 1980s or AI companies from investing in compute infrastructure recently. “It seems very early to pick winners and losers in this category,” Le stated, advocating for a neutral stance that recognizes crypto’s parallels to commodities like oil.

Frequently Asked
Questions

What Companies Would Be Affected by MSCI’s Crypto Exclusion Rule?

Primarily digital asset treasury companies (DATs) with over 50% of balance sheet assets in Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies, such as MicroStrategy, which holds more than 660,000 BTC. This targets firms using crypto as a primary reserve, potentially excluding them from MSCI’s global equity indexes used by major funds. The rule aims to differentiate operating businesses from investment funds, per MSCI’s guidelines.

Why Is MicroStrategy Opposing the MSCI Crypto Exclusion Proposal?

MicroStrategy views the proposal as biased against digital assets, arguing it’s like excluding oil majors for their core holdings. CFO Phong Le stressed the company’s operational structure and innovation potential, warning that exclusion could limit passive investment flows into Bitcoin, much like historical restrictions on emerging technologies hindered growth. This stance promotes crypto’s integration into mainstream finance.

Key Takeaways

• MSCI’s Proposal Targets Balance Sheet Composition: Excludes firms with over 50% digital assets to preserve index integrity, impacting crypto treasury strategies.
• Industry Pushback Highlights Parallels to Traditional Assets: Comparisons to Chevron’s oil holdings underscore perceived double standards in asset classification.
• Consultation Could Reshape $60 Trillion in Investments: Decisions by early 2026 may influence how indexes treat crypto, urging investors to monitor developments closely.

Conclusion

The MSCI crypto exclusion debate underscores tensions between traditional index methodologies and the rise of digital assets like Bitcoin. While MSCI seeks to maintain neutrality by focusing on operating companies over funds, voices from MicroStrategy and experts like Phong Le and Charlie Sherry argue it risks marginalizing a transformative asset class. As the consultation wraps up by December 31, 2025, the outcome could either integrate crypto further into global finance or delay its adoption. Investors should watch for January 2026 announcements and consider diversified strategies amid evolving regulations.

The MSCI Index is consulting on whether to exclude Bitcoin and other digital asset treasury companies that have a balance sheet with more than 50% of their assets in crypto.

Stock market index MSCI’s proposed exclusion of companies holding more than 50% of their crypto on their balance sheets would be akin to pushing out multinational energy companies like Chevron for holding oil, argues MicroStrategy CFO Phong Le.

The MSCI Index announced in October that it was consulting with the investment community about whether to exclude Bitcoin and other digital asset treasury companies (DATs) that have the majority of their balance sheet in crypto. 

During an interview with the Schwab Network on Wednesday, a streaming and market-analysis channel, Le said that he has “a lot of respect for the indexes,” but said the MSCI’s stance is “misinformed and misguided.”

He also said that oil giant Chevron has more than half of its assets in oil, timberland company Weyerhaeuser has a significant portion of its assets in wood, and Simon Property Group owns a substantial part of its assets in real estate, and none of them are facing exclusion. 

Phong Le joined SchwabNetwork to discuss the $60T digital credit opportunity and response to MSCI. Restricting passive index investment in bitcoin today would be like restricting investment in oil and oil rigs in the 1900s, spectrum and cell towers in the 1980s, or compute and… pic.twitter.com/3VcYnF5nE4

— MicroStrategy (@MicroStrategy) December 10, 2025

“It seems very early to pick winners and choosers and stifle innovation in a category like this,” Le said. 

“This would be like in the 1980s, saying the telecom company shouldn’t have built out cell towers and spectrum, or three years ago, saying AI companies shouldn’t be investing in LL labs and high-performance compute.”

MSCI’s stance is a mischaracterization: MicroStrategy CFO

Le said that other parts of the MSCI proposal, such as characterizing MicroStrategy and other digital asset companies as funds rather than operating companies, are also a mistake.

Some of the feedback to the proposal so far has been that DATs can “exhibit characteristics similar to investment funds, which are currently not eligible for index inclusion,” according to the MSCI. 

“I’ve been CFO since 2015, Michael Saylor founded the company in 1989, we’ve been public since 1998, I work here day to day, and we are 100% an operating company legally from a corporate structure,” Le said.

MicroStrategy letter says MSCI proposal isn’t neutral

Le’s comments come on the same day as MicroStrategy released its letter to MSCI, pushing back on the proposal on the grounds that it would bias the MSCI against crypto as an asset class, rather than the index company acting as a neutral arbiter.

Related: MicroStrategy’s Bitcoin treasury swells past 660,000 BTC after fresh $962M buy

The MSCI consultation is open until Dec. 31, with the conclusion to be made public on Jan. 15 next year, and any resulting changes coming into force during February.

Charlie Sherry, the head of finance at Australian crypto exchange BTC Markets, told financial news outlets last month that the MSCI only puts changes like this into consultation when they’re already leaning toward implementation. 

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