MicroStrategy’s shares rose more than 5% in pre-market trading on Tuesday, after the enterprise software company announced its intention to buy more bitcoins.
In a press release, MicroStrategy said it plans to offer $ 600 million in senior convertible notes and use net revenue to buy bitcoin.
The company already owns about 72,000 bitcoin units, in a February 2 regulatory process. This is worth almost $ 3.6 billion based on the virtual currency price on Tuesday.
It is the second time that MicroStrategy raises funds to finance the purchase of the cryptocurrency. In December, the Virginia-based company closed a $ 650 million senior convertible note offering.
Convertible notes are debt, but can be turned into company stock, cash or a combination of both at a later date.
Under the leadership of President and CEO Michael Saylor, MicroStrategy has become one of the first to adopt companies that buy bitcoins as an investment. The company released its first cryptocurrency purchase in August, acquiring 21,454 bitcoins using the cash on its balance sheet.
Saylor advocates that other companies do the same, organizing a virtual conference earlier this month called “Bitcoin for Corporations”. Saylor publicly encouraged Tesla CEO Elon Musk to follow his “handbook” in a Twitter conversation in December. A little over a month later, Tesla announced that it bought $ 1.5 billion in bitcoin and had plans to eventually accept digital currency as payment for its products.
The price of bitcoin reached $ 50,000 per currency for the first time on Tuesday morning, continuing its rise in recent days, with several established financial firms, such as BNY Mellon and Mastercard, announcing moves in the cryptographic space.
MicroStrategy’s shares have been on the rise since August, as some investors are looking at stocks as a way to gain exposure to bitcoin. The shares have risen more than 660% since August 11, when the company unveiled its first bitcoin purchase.
The stock hit a 52-week high of $ 1,315 on February 9.