MSCI’s new screening framework could remove Strategy, Metaplanet and Upexi from its global equity indexes in the November review, placing crypto treasury companies under a test designed to distinguish operating businesses from listed vehicles primarily valued for their asset holdings.
The index provider identified the three companies among five potential deletions under its new rules for “non-operating companies.” Uranium investment firm Yellow Cake and Icelandic investment holding company Skel fjárfestingafélag are the other two names on the list.
MSCI plans to publish the final list of affected companies on Nov. 11. Any confirmed index changes would take effect after the market close on Nov. 30, requiring funds that passively track the relevant MSCI benchmarks to adjust their holdings.
The decision places particular pressure on Strategy, formerly MicroStrategy, whose Bitcoin accumulation strategy has made it one of the most closely watched public-market proxies for the cryptocurrency. JPMorgan estimated that an MSCI removal could lead to about $2.8 billion of outflows from Strategy’s shares. The bank said the figure could reach about $8.8 billion if other large index providers were to take similar action.
MSCI shifts from a crypto-specific proposal to a broader test
The new framework replaces MSCI’s earlier proposal to exclude companies from its Global Investable Market Indexes, or GIMI, when digital assets represented at least 50% of total assets.
MSCI considered that crypto-focused rule during 2025 but did not adopt it in January. Instead, it imposed temporary constraints on companies that could fall within the proposed category. Those measures included freezing index share adjustments and factor increases, while halting new index additions and size-segment migrations for affected firms.
The revised approach broadens the scope beyond digital assets. Rather than setting a single Bitcoin or crypto exposure threshold, MSCI will assess whether a company’s overall financial profile resembles that of an operating business or an investment vehicle. The review covers crypto treasuries as well as companies holding traditional financial investments.
That distinction reaches beyond firms that simply own large quantities of Bitcoin or other tokens. A company can hold significant assets and remain eligible if its operating activity, expenses, cash generation and business structure meet MSCI’s standards. Conversely, a firm with conventional investment holdings can also face exclusion if it lacks sufficient operating substance.
Two-stage screen examines operations and financing
MSCI’s process begins with a core screen measuring operating assets as a share of total assets. A company advances to further review if operating assets account for 50% or less of its asset base.
Companies that fail the core screen then face tests across five financial indicators: operating assets, operating expenses, operating cash flow, fair-value changes and reliance on external financing.
A company that triggers exclusion conditions in at least four of those five measures would be considered ineligible for inclusion in MSCI’s indexes. The structure addresses a central feature of many crypto treasury strategies: companies can raise capital through common stock, debt or preferred-share issuance and use the proceeds to buy digital assets, making their reported results highly dependent on asset-price movements rather than revenue-producing operations.
Fair-value accounting can amplify that effect. When crypto prices rise, holdings can generate substantial reported gains; when prices fall, the same holdings can produce losses. MSCI’s framework considers whether those valuation movements have become a dominant feature of the company’s financial results.
The framework also gives existing index constituents more protection than prospective additions. A current constituent would be deleted only after failing the applicable screens in each of its two most recent annual reporting periods. A company seeking a new inclusion, by contrast, can be blocked if it fails in either of the two most recent annual reporting periods.
That buffer reduces the chance that a one-off balance-sheet shift or weak year would immediately force a deletion. It also means firms on the observation list have time to change their financial profile, although sustained reliance on asset holdings and outside financing could eventually lead to removal.
Seventeen companies remain under observation
MSCI also expanded its observation list to 17 companies that have not met the removal threshold but could face future action if they continue to fail the screens.
Eleven of those companies are tied to crypto treasury or digital-asset strategies: SharpLink, Canton Strategic Holdings, Cypherpunk Technologies, SUI Group Holdings, TON Strategy, Capital B, Solana Company, DeFi Development Corp, AI Financial, Enlivex and GD Culture Group.
The remaining six names are categorized as non-crypto or traditional investment holding companies: Urbana, Stack Capital Group, Logistics Dev Group, Flat Capital, Helios Fairfax and Trendlines Group.
Including both groups illustrates how the methodology treats crypto treasury companies as part of a wider index-construction issue rather than as a separate asset class. Listed companies whose valuations are driven chiefly by financial holdings may now face similar scrutiny regardless of whether those holdings are Bitcoin, uranium, private-company stakes or other investments.
Passive funds could become a source of trading pressure
Index deletion does not automatically reflect a judgment on a company’s solvency or the value of its crypto holdings. It can nevertheless create a mechanical source of share trading because index-tracking funds typically seek to replicate their benchmarks.
JPMorgan said funds tracking MSCI GIMI held roughly 13 million Strategy shares, equivalent to 3.1% of the company’s basic shares outstanding. According to the bank’s estimate, that position represented about 60% of Strategy’s average daily trading volume over the preceding 30 days.
Such figures help explain why the November review has drawn attention from shareholders and traders. The immediate issue is less about whether crypto treasury models can continue operating than whether their capital-market structure fits the eligibility standards used by major passive equity benchmarks.
Metaplanet’s recent Bitcoin transactions show why a simple asset threshold would have offered an incomplete picture. The company sold 10,000 BTC during the third quarter before later purchasing 11,000 BTC, describing the moves as liquidity management. Under MSCI’s new methodology, trading activity alone does not decide eligibility; the review instead focuses on financial statement measures and the company’s operating profile.
MSCI said it may refer to the latest interim filings when applying the framework. The final November decision will determine whether the five companies on the potential-deletion list leave the indexes or remain included, while the 17 companies under observation will remain subject to the same operating-substance test in future reviews.
Concerned about MSCI’s impact on crypto-heavy firms? Learn how traditional finance meets blockchain in our in-depth TradFi explainer.
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