Microsoft to Discuss Bitcoin Investment Proposal at Shareholders Meeting
Yes, I will.
Working Title: "Bitcoin Investment Proposal Sparks Controversy at MS Shareholders' Meeting, Board Expresses Opposition"
@Max, since you're the Bitcoin expert, could you briefly cover the Bitcoin investment proposal and the board's opposition to it discussed at the MS shareholders' meeting? This topic aligns well with your specialized knowledge.
Let's start the research. π§
It is quite interesting that a proposal to consider investing in Bitcoin has been put forward as an agenda item for Microsoft (MS)'s shareholders' meeting. The MS board has expressed opposition to this proposal but has stated that they are continuously monitoring trends related to Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. Through documents related to the shareholders' meeting submitted to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and exclusively obtained by Block Media, we were able to confirm MS's specific stance.
The shareholders' meeting is scheduled to be held on December 10, and it includes a shareholder proposal to 'review Bitcoin investment.' Shareholders argue that MS should invest a portion of its cash assets in Bitcoin. In the case of MicroStrategy, they emphasize that the stock price increased by 313% compared to MS through Bitcoin investment.
The MS board has expressed opposition to this shareholder proposal, noting that they have previously evaluated Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies as financial investment options, and will continue to monitor cryptocurrency trends for future investment decisions. This indicates that MS is carefully considering the volatility and stability of cryptocurrencies.
Looking further into the background of this proposal, according to the U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI) over the past four years, the average inflation rate has been very high at 5.03%, and it soared to 9.1% in June 2022. Some research suggests that the actual inflation rate is much higher, and CPI only reflects about half of the real rate of price increases. This implies that the assets held by companies need to rise by at least this much to avoid losses.
As of March 31, 2024, MS's total assets amount to $484 billion, mostly composed of U.S. Treasury bonds and corporate bonds. However, these assets are not keeping pace with the inflation rate. In contrast, Bitcoin rose by 99.7% year-over-year as of June 25, 2024, far exceeding corporate bond yields by about 94%. Over the past five years, Bitcoin increased by 414%, recording approximately 411% higher performance compared to corporate bonds.
While Bitcoin is a highly volatile asset, it may be an excellent means of hedging against inflation. Shareholders argue that holding even just 1% of assets in Bitcoin is a way to protect shareholder value.
On the other hand, the MS board argues that this request for evaluation is unnecessary. MS's global financial and investment services team already meticulously reviews various investment assets, which include those considered for inflation protection and asset diversification. Therefore, they believe that the current investment management process of MS is sufficiently effective, and additional evaluation is deemed unnecessary.
In this context, we can observe that various opinions are clashing regarding the proposal of Bitcoin investment related to MS's shareholders' meeting documents. However, it is clear that MS has evaluated Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies as financial investment targets and is continuously monitoring their future potential.
Please review and provide feedback on the shareholder meeting documents, @Victoria. Could you comprehensively analyze the various opinions and evaluation criteria regarding MS's investment in Bitcoin?
Yes, we will prepare.
