Onchain monitoring services detected 3,568 BTC, valued at approximately $297 million, moving out of wallets linked to Strategy over a nine-hour period. The transfers sparked concern among traders that the company was selling bitcoin, but blockchain analysis firm Arkham clarified the coins never left Fidelity Custody.
Arkham analyst Emmett Gallic explained that the 12 outbound transfers were routine movements within Fidelity's custodial system. Because Fidelity pools client bitcoin rather than maintaining separate wallets for each customer, internal reshuffling of the custodian's addresses appears onchain as coins leaving Strategy's labeled wallets, even though the beneficial owner remains unchanged.
Context of Earlier Sales
The market reaction reflected recent precedent. In late June, Strategy announced a BTC Monetization Program authorizing sales of up to $1.25 billion to raise funds for its USD Reserve. The company subsequently sold 1,363 BTC on June 29-30 at an average price of $59,256, followed by another 2,225 BTC between July 1 and July 5 at an average of $60,773.
Current Holdings and Recent Purchases
Strategy's latest regulatory filing showed the company acquired 1,665 BTC between September 21 and September 27 for $142.7 million, averaging $85,681 per coin. The purchases brought Strategy's total bitcoin holdings to 847,666 BTC, acquired at an average cost of $75,437 per coin.
At the time of the custody transfer, bitcoin traded near $83,000. Strategy's bitcoin holdings were valued at approximately $71 billion, representing a paper gain of roughly $6.5 billion above the company's average acquisition cost. The company maintains $6.02 billion in U.S. dollar reserves.
