Strategy is expanding two investment vehicles with opposite characteristics, both backed by the same bitcoin (BTC) holdings.

On April 3 (local time), blockchain media outlet BeInCrypto reported that Strategy offers leveraged price exposure through common stock MSTR and monthly cash-flow exposure through perpetual preferred stock STRC.

The company holds 762,099 BTC, with an average purchase price of about $75,694. The holdings are worth about $51.0 billion, and the same bitcoin stash supports both products. But the risk and return profile investors experience is completely different.

MSTR has a strong "high-volatility" character because bitcoin price swings are amplified in the share price. That is tied to Strategy’s structure of raising funds through stock and debt issuance to buy more bitcoin. In a bull market, MSTR can deliver 1.5 to 3 times bitcoin’s performance, but losses also widen in a downturn. It has no dividend, and investors also face dilution from fundraising. MSTR closed at $119.13 on April 2, down about 56 percent over the past six months and 74 percent below its 52-week high of $457.22.

By contrast, STRC puts "income" ahead of volatility. STRC is a perpetual preferred stock listed in July 2025. It pays monthly cash dividends and adjusts the dividend rate so the share price trades near its par value of $100. Strategy said it kept the April dividend rate at 11.5 percent, the first time it has held steady after raising it for seven straight months since launch.

The dividend adjustment rules are also disclosed. If STRC’s 30-day volume-weighted average price (VWAP) falls below $95, the board can be advised to raise the dividend by at least 50 basis points, or 0.5 percentage point. It is maintained in the $99 to $101 range, and if it rises above $101, the dividend could be cut. In other words, it strips out daily bitcoin price swings and replaces them with predictable monthly income. STRC traded flat at $100 on April 2, and its 52-week price range was also limited at $88.00 to $100.42. Its return since the start of the year was about 4 percent, most of which came from dividends.

The investor mix also differs. Phong Le (퐁 레), Strategy’s chief executive, said in March that about 80 percent of STRC holders are retail investors, while retail investors account for about 40 percent of MSTR common stock holders. Bitcoin advocate Halston Valencia (할스턴 발렌시아) also said MSTR is for investors seeking leveraged exposure based on conviction in bitcoin, while STRC is for investors who believe in bitcoin but prefer stable income to volatility.

External analysis reached a similar conclusion. Mark Palmer of Benchmark-StoneX viewed MSTR as a "non-dividend bitcoin proxy that operates with leverage" and assessed it as suited to investors with high risk tolerance. He cited STRC’s predictable income and bitcoin over-collateralisation structure as strengths.

STRC’s rising presence is most visible in its fundraising role. Strategy announced a $42.0 billion at-the-market (ATM) programme and said it would split it evenly between MSTR and STRC issuance to make additional purchases toward its bitcoin holding target of 1 million BTC. In March, STRC issuance supported bitcoin purchases of $1.18 billion, or about 16,800 BTC, while funds raised through MSTR common stock issuance totalled $396 million. The comparison highlights that even with the same bitcoin conviction, portfolio expression splits into "growth (leverage)" and "income (dividends)".

The article underscores that even with the same bitcoin holdings, the investor experience can be completely different. Strategy is broadening investment demand by offering leveraged exposure to price gains through MSTR and defensive exposure focused on monthly cash flow through STRC. It is Strategy’s core approach, the article said, to use bitcoin as a common underlying asset but deliver it through different product structures of "aggressive growth" and "stable income".