Metaplanet's 3-month hidden scheme to avoid buying coins! $600 million arbitrage harvests retail investors

Metaplanet has stopped purchasing Bitcoin for three months since October, effectively initiating an arbitrage strategy. When the market net value drops below 1.0, repurchasing shares becomes more cost-effective than buying coins, and the company immediately secures a $100,000,000 mortgage loan and a $500,000,000 repurchase quota. The resolution was approved at the December shareholders’ meeting, with the management of Norway’s $2 trillion bank publicly supporting it.

Metaplanet Market Net Value Falls Below 1.0 Triggering Financial Arbitrage Mechanism

(Source: Metaplanet)

The core reason for Metaplanet’s three-month silence is that the market net value (MNAV) fell below the critical level of 1.0. MNAV is an indicator measuring the ratio of the company’s stock price to the actual value of its held Bitcoin. When MNAV is below 1.0, it means the company’s stock trading price is below the actual value of Bitcoin on its balance sheet.

This price reversal creates a mathematical arbitrage opportunity. Suppose Metaplanet holds 30,893 Bitcoins, with a current market value of X. If the company’s stock market value is only 0.9X, then each repurchase and cancellation of 10% of shares increases the remaining shareholders’ Bitcoin holdings per share by 11.1%. In contrast, directly buying Bitcoin on the market with the same amount of capital would only increase holdings by about 10%.

For retail investors, this financial engineering game is extremely unfavorable. When MNAV is at a discount, company management creates value for existing shareholders through stock buybacks, but this requires large-scale repurchases of their own shares in the open market, pushing up the stock price. Retail investors chasing high at this time will face dual risks: once MNAV recovers to parity, the buyback plan ends and the stock price may fall back; simultaneously, if Bitcoin prices drop, the stock price will also plummet.

Metaplanet CEO Simon Gerovich clearly understands this. The company immediately ceased direct Bitcoin accumulation and shifted to readjusting its capital structure, moving from simple buy-ins to active leverage and equity management. This is not a sign of passive holding but a mature financial institution’s approach.

$600 Million Dual-Track Financing to Build a Leverage Harvesting Machine

Metaplanet’s financial engineering is divided into two parallel tracks. The first is obtaining a $100,000,000 Bitcoin mortgage loan, collateralized by part of its 30,893 Bitcoins. This capital is explicitly used to double down during market pullbacks. Borrowing against Bitcoin to buy more Bitcoin is a common “cyclical” strategy among aggressive crypto-native funds, but it is extremely rare in Japanese corporate governance.

The risk of this strategy is that if Bitcoin’s price drops sharply and hits the liquidation line, the company will be forced to sell collateral to repay the loan, locking in losses at the worst possible timing. However, Gerovich is apparently willing to tolerate higher volatility to maximize the treasury before the next supply shock.

Three Major Killers of the Dual-Track Financing Strategy

Bitcoin Mortgage Loan: $100,000,000 dedicated to doubling crypto purchases during market dips, amplifying gains but also introducing liquidation risk

Share Repurchase Quota: $500,000,000 used for stock buybacks when MNAV is at a discount, with each cancellation increasing the Bitcoin value per remaining shareholder

Dynamic Switching Mechanism: Based on real-time MNAV status, flexibly switching between Bitcoin purchases and stock buybacks to maximize capital efficiency

The second track involves launching a $500,000,000 credit line dedicated to the stock repurchase program. When MNAV falls below parity, Metaplanet’s cancellation of each share can more effectively increase the Bitcoin value per remaining investor than directly buying Bitcoin. This mechanism fundamentally changes the company’s defensive strategy, allowing management to buy back its own shares and Bitcoin on any trading day, depending on where prices are lowest.

For retail investors, this dynamic switching strategy means they are always at a disadvantage due to information asymmetry. When the company chooses to buy back shares, holders of spot Bitcoin miss out on stock price increases; when the company opts to buy Bitcoin, stockholders face dilution risk.

Shareholders’ Meeting Approves Aggressive Proposal Backed by Norway Sovereign Fund

The special shareholders’ meeting on December 22 laid the legal foundation for the entire financial engineering. Investors approved all five management proposals, providing the necessary safeguards for implementing the complex new strategy. The most critical first proposal authorized the transfer of share capital and reserve funds to “Other Capital Surplus,” a bookkeeping maneuver that releases distributable capital, enabling the company to pay dividends on preferred shares and creating the capacity to repurchase treasury stock to eliminate MNAV discounts.

The second proposal increased authorized shares of Class A and Class B preferred stock from 277,500,000 shares each to 555,000,000 shares. This substantial increase effectively creates a “buffer zone” for Metaplanet, allowing it to raise capital quickly without convening future shareholders’ meetings. It essentially grants management a blank check to expand the balance sheet as needed based on institutional investor demand.

The remaining proposals redesign the preferred shares. Class A preferred stock is renamed “MARS” (Metaplanet Adjustable Rate Security), paying floating-rate dividends monthly to stabilize prices and attract conservative income investors. Class B stock now pays dividends quarterly, with a strong indication of future US listing plans, including a redemption clause exercisable at 130% after 10 years and put options for investors if the company does not IPO within a year.

Most striking is the attitude of Norway’s Government Pension Fund Global, which manages $2 trillion in assets. It publicly expressed unanimous support for all five proposals put forward by Metaplanet. For such a massive sovereign fund to vote in favor of a capital restructuring aimed at Bitcoin accumulation marks a watershed moment for this asset class. It signals that institutional investors are beginning to view Bitcoin treasury strategies as legitimate corporate governance rather than “shadow banking” anomalies.

The Retail Capture Logic Behind the 100,000 Bitcoin Goal

With governance approval completed and credit lines activated, Metaplanet has cleared the obstacles to achieving its “North Star” goal—holding 100,000 Bitcoins as a reserve. The company has transformed from a cash-flow-driven Bitcoin buyer into a financial engineer, maximizing exposure through stock buybacks, asset-backed loans, and structured preferred shares.

Market expectations should see the pace of filings resume and accelerate, but the nature of activities may change. When MNAV widens in discount, stock buybacks will occur; when premiums return, active spot Bitcoin purchases will resume. This dynamic combination is a paradise for professional traders but a nightmare for retail investors. The silence over the past three months was not hesitation but a reloading of ammunition.