Metaplanet has revealed that National Financial Services LLC (NFS), a subsidiary of investment giant
Fidelity Investments, now holds the largest shareholding position in the company.
A filing made public on July 15
indicates
that NFS possesses 84.4 million Metaplanet shares, representing 12.9% of the firm’s total equity. At current market prices, this stake is valued at roughly ¥121 billion, equivalent to around $816 million USD.
Notably, as of March 31st, NFS’s holding in Metaplanet was significantly smaller, totaling just 1.91 million shares.
NFS functions as a custodian for both individual and institutional investors utilizing Fidelity’s trading platforms. Fidelity itself is among the select group of twelve entities offering spot Bitcoin ETFs within the United States, with its
FBTC
fund managing assets worth approximately $25 billion.
This substantial increase underscores the growing interest from both institutions and individual investors in the Japanese company, largely fueled by its ambitious embrace of Bitcoin.
Earlier this month, Metaplanet’s CEO, Simon Gerovich,
announced that Capital Group, another prominent US-based asset manager overseeing $2.9 trillion in assets, had also disclosed a significant stake in Metaplanet. Reports indicate that Capital Group holds 44.2 million shares, accounting for 6.6% of the company’s total ownership.
Georvich
commented
that these investments demonstrate the continuous evolution of the company’s shareholder base as global accessibility expands.
Bitcoin Investments Climb Amidst Stock Market Challenges
This heightened institutional attention coincides with Metaplanet’s aggressive accumulation of Bitcoin over the past year.
According to
Metaplanet’s official data, the Japanese company currently holds 16,352 BTC, acquired at a total cost of $1.6 billion. These substantial holdings have generated unrealized profits exceeding $300 million.
These holdings have also propelled Metaplanet to become the fifth-largest publicly traded holder of Bitcoin, surpassing companies such as
Tesla.
Despite this aggressive acquisition strategy, Metaplanet’s stock has faced recent challenges. According to
Yahoo Finance data, shares have declined by over 24% in the past month and are currently trading around ¥1,436, following an 8% drop today.
Despite this dip, trading activity in Metaplanet stock remains high.
Dylan LeClair, the company’s Director of Bitcoin Strategy,
reported
that Metaplanet accounted for 29.2% of all Japanese yen-denominated trading volume on the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s Standard Market over the preceding 20 trading sessions.
This momentum follows a remarkable 1,400% surge in the company’s stock price over the past year, solidifying its position as one of Japan’s most closely monitored mid-cap stocks.