[Digital Today reporter Jinju Hong] Peter Schiff, a prominent gold advocate and bitcoin critic, publicly criticised STRC, a perpetual preferred stock led by Michael Saylor, calling it “dead.”

U.Today, a blockchain outlet, reported on Nov. 9 (local time) that Schiff claimed Strategy’s investment product STRC has effectively failed to win market support despite a high 12 percent dividend yield, and that the company is artificially propping it up through large-scale buybacks.

The core issue, he argued, is not the yield but how the product survives. Schiff described STRC as “dead” and criticised Strategy as being in a state of using an “artificial life support device.” He pointed to the lack of organic demand despite the high dividend offer.

Schiff focused in particular on Strategy’s response. He claimed the company is sustaining STRC through “large-scale buybacks.” While a 12 percent dividend rate might appear attractive, Schiff viewed it as a structure in which price or demand does not form organically.

His remarks were closer to a debate over structure than a simple price dispute. The issue has emerged as whether STRC is traded based on real investor demand or whether purchases by the issuer are the key means of supporting the product. Schiff put more weight on the latter, pressing the view that STRC is already a “dead” product.

In terms of market reaction, the criticism is an extension of an existing back-and-forth surrounding Strategy and Michael Saylor. Schiff is seen as a prominent bitcoin critic and has repeatedly raised questions about Saylor and Strategy’s fundraising methods and bitcoin-centred strategy. This time he squarely targeted the sustainability of the preferred-stock product Strategy has introduced, rather than bitcoin itself.

STRC’s high dividend also became the centre of the controversy. Double-digit dividend yields can generally be a factor that attracts investors, but Schiff said even that 12 percent yield failed to keep the product alive. He effectively delivered the message that actual market demand and the extent of issuer intervention matter more than dividend terms visible on the surface.

A key point to watch will be how Strategy responds to such criticism. If the debate over STRC continues, investors may be more likely to focus on the buyback structure and the sustainability of supply and demand than on the dividend level. The controversy again showed that financial products offered by bitcoin-related companies are difficult to assess on high yields alone.

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