Nasdaq-listed Semler Scientific announced it had purchased 83 Bitcoin worth $5 million, ballooning its total cryptocurrency holdings to 1,012 BTC, purchased for $68 million.
Semler Scientific Adds More BTC To Its Balance Sheet
In what appears to be a move inspired by MicroStrategy’s treasury playbook, Semler Scientific has acquired an additional 83 BTC worth $ 5 million, including fees and transaction expenses. The development is a reminder of the increasingly popular practice of adding the premier cryptocurrency to the company’s treasury asset portfolio.
Commenting on the acquisition, Eric Semler, chairman of Semler Scientific noted:
We recently purchased additional bitcoins using primarily cash from operations as well as capital raised through our at-the-market equity program. We are encouraged by the growing institutional adoption of bitcoin. It was recently reported that for the first time, institutions own more than 20% of bitcoin ETF assets under management. We believe this increasing institutionalization will drive value for both bitcoin prices and for our stockholders.
For the uninitiated, Semler Scientific first added Bitcoin to its balance sheet in May 2024 when it purchased 654 BTC for $40 million. At the time, the company stated that it views the largest cryptocurrency by market cap as its primary treasury asset.
In June 2024, Semler Scientific made another purchase of 247 BTC, investing $17 million in the leading digital asset. The same month, the company announced its plans to raise $150 million to increase its BTC reserve.
Furthermore, the firm added another 101 worth $6 million to its steadily inflating BTC reserve earlier this month. The latest purchase reaffirms Semler Scientific’s trust in BTC as a long-term asset for its treasury. However, Bitcoin price has not witnessed any immediate volatility since the latest purchase was made public.
Increased Institutional Interest In Bitcoin and other Cryptocurrencies
According to data from CoinGecko, more than 320,000 BTC is held by 29 publicly traded companies worldwide as part of their corporate treasury. Unsurprisingly, the list is led by MicroStrategy, which owns over 225,000 BTC worth more than $14 billion.
The list comprises companies such as Galaxy Digital Holdings, Tesla, and Coinbase. These 29 companies collectively own more than 1.6% of all BTC in existence, underscoring the rapidly growing popularity of the cryptocurrency as a reliable asset to hedge against inflation induced by currency debasement.
According to major Wall Street players such as Goldman Sachs, the trend is expected to continue. Further, the approval of Bitcoin-based exchange-traded-funds (ETF) in recent months has essentially put regulatory approval on the top digital asset.
The positive effects of approving a crypto-based ETF have cascaded onto other leading digital currencies. For instance, the world’s fifth-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, Solana (SOL), has piqued institutional interest in recent months.
Similarly, despite the less-than-ideal market conditions, Ethereum-based ETFs in the US have witnessed a strong demand in recent months, attracting around $98 million in inflows.
Since the beginning of 2024, Bitcoin ETFs have earned almost $18 billion. However, despite the overwhelming success of such ETFs, some institutional investors remain hesitant, believing that the interest has largely been driven by retail investors.
With the changing macro-outlook spurred by the US Federal Reserve’s long-awaited interest rate cuts beginning in September 2024, there could be renewed institutional interest in the orange coin.