Bitcoin: Strategy doubles its repurchase ability after investing $176 million to increase its stake

Strategy announced a repurchase of $176 million in STRC and doubled the size of its repurchase program to $2 billion.

On Tuesday, Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy) announced that it had bought back $176 million worth of STRC shares and doubled the size of its repurchase program to $2 billion. The move aims to reaffirm to the crypto market its ability to support bitcoin-linked securities. At the same time, Michael Saylor also tightened the company's internal risk indicators. However, long-time Bitcoin critic Peter Schiff immediately questioned the real need behind the operation.

However, the most eye-catching detail of the day came neither from Siler nor Schiff, but from Strategy's online store, which is selling a "BTC themed" sneaker for $250, but surprisingly, it doesn't support Bitcoin payments!

Summary

• Strategy strengthens its financial structure to support its bitcoin linked securities.
• One long-time critic questions the true solidity of underlying demand.
• At the same time, the company's own online store showed a strange distrust of its reference currency.

Strategy strengthens its $2 billion repurchase program to support Bitcoin securities

Documents filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday concern Strategy (ticker symbol: STRC)'s U.S. -listed securities and its broader fundraising efforts to support its large open positions. According to information released by Michael Siler on Platform X, as of September 7, 2026, Strategy held 845,050 bitcoins and US$6.5 billion in cash. The $176 million repurchase means the company is recouping securities already held by investors.

Doubling the size of the repurchase program only gives companies more flexibility to continue these purchases if necessary. The action is part of Strategy's ongoing art of balancing: supporting the prices of its bitcoin-linked credit securities while continuing to defend its digital asset-centric cash management strategy.

Michael Siler and Peter Schiff's standoff over real demand

Michael Siler highlighted Strategy's so-called "BTC Credit," an internal indicator designed to measure risks associated with its bitcoin-linked capital structure. According to him, assuming an annualized return of 10%, and a volatility of 40%, the risk indicator has tightened to 53 basis points (down 1 basis point).

Peter Schiff, a long critic of Bitcoin, responded quickly. He questioned the true goal of this operation on the X platform:

Even if you reduced the price of STRC to $100, you wouldn't be able to issue more shares. Clearly, at the current dividend yield of 12%, demand is not sufficient. If you choose to sell, the price will fall again and you will have to restart the repurchase program.

Schiff's question touches on the core pain point: Can STRC attract enough crypto investors without relying on Strategy's own continued support? Siler did not publicly respond to the criticism, but other users on the Internet joined in the discussion.

Does Strategy's store not trust Bitcoin?

The story becomes quite ironic here. While Michael Siler defended the robustness of his Bitcoin structure, Strategy's online store was selling a customized "BTC themed" Air Jordan 1 sneaker for $250. Sounds good, right? However, the payment page only accepts regular credit cards and Apple Pay, and there is no option for Bitcoin payment at all.

This seems strange for a company that holds as much as 845,000 bitcoins and publishes risk indicators accurate to the point. However, it is clearly reluctant to sell a pair of sneakers in its own reference currency.

People may think of it as a simple operating option, which may be related to volatility or the simplicity of the checkout system. But this symbolism cannot be ignored. If the world's most committed company to Bitcoin as a store of value believes it is unnecessary to accept Bitcoin on its own website to purchase $250 worth of goods, then this is a subtle but real signal that reveals the gap between institutional rhetoric and the daily use of cryptocurrencies.

It's not that Strategy lacks faith in Bitcoin. Maybe it's just that Michael Siler himself prefers the simplicity and convenience of charging $250 with a credit card.

Key points on Strategy's repurchase of STRC

• Strategy bought back $176 million of STRC and increased its repurchase program from $1 billion to $2 billion. As of September 7, 2026, the company held 845,050 BTC and US$6.5 billion in cash.
• Strategy's internal "BTC credit" indicator has been tightened to 53 basis points, but Peter Schiff questioned the feasibility of STRC demand without continued buybacks.
• Strategy's online store sells a "BTC-themed" Air Jordan for $250 that only supports credit card or Apple Pay payments and does not provide bitcoin options.
• No matter how Strategy tightens its indicators, the contradiction remains: a company with 845,000 bitcoins does not accept the use of BTC on its own sales website. Sometimes, the most honest signals do not come from press releases, but appear on payment pages.