Microsoft will open a vote that could make the company buy Bitcoin
Technology giant Microsoft could become the new company to add Bitcoin (BTC) to its cash flow. To do this, the company's shareholders must vote on a proposal to evaluate Bitcoin as a potential corporate investment.
According to the announcement, the proposal came from an advisory board of shareholders and the vote should take place on December 10th. If approved, the measure determines that the company must allocate part of its cash in Bitcoin.
Additionally, the proposal requires the company to conduct a thorough assessment of Bitcoin's potential in Microsoft's treasury management. However, the company's top executives are trying to convince shareholders to reject the proposal.
Microsoft Votes to Adopt Bitcoin
According to the registration made on October 24th with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the proposal places a series of investments for Microsoft, including Bitcoin. The objective is to make the company diversify its cash and make part of this value profitable.
Proponents of the proposal on the advisory board argue that the assessment is necessary due to the increasing incorporation of cryptocurrencies. The proposal suggests that more analysis needs to be done to understand how BTC can improve Microsoft's treasury functions.
The vote is scheduled to take place at the company's annual meeting on December 10. However, Microsoft's board of directors suggested that shareholders should not support the proposal.
Council asks for patience
According to Microsoft directors, the company is already evaluating investing in various assets, including BTC, and the process is an ongoing part of its financial management. Still, directors ask that shareholders not approve the inclusion of cryptocurrency now.
The board cited Bitcoin's high volatility as justification for its caution, stressing that liquidity is a major concern in investments. For directors, BTC cannot be considered the appropriate tool for corporate investments.
In a statement released on Thursday (24), the board already noted that Microsoft's global treasury and investment services team engages in tracking and analyzing various investments.
This includes considerations related to diversification, inflation protection, and risk management, such as the potential purchase of OpenAI in three years. The board also highlighted that previous assessments incorporated BTC's price fluctuations, which led to the current decision.
They highlighted that the company's treasury needs stable and certain assets to help meet the organization's liquidity and operational financing needs, which are essential to Microsoft's financial sustainability.
Bitcoin as part of the treasury
Microsoft's treasury team has been evaluating cryptocurrencies like BTC for several years. According to the board, these assets are monitored as part of a broader assessment of market trends. However, they were not prioritized due to concerns about volatility and their ability to meet the company's financial requirements.
The board emphasized that Microsoft already has processes in place to manage its investments and that the vote precisely calls for the inclusion of these processes. Therefore, the directors believe that voting “yes” would be redundant and unnecessary as the team continues to consider these assets in its risk management strategies.
According to the latest quarterly report, Microsoft had about $75.53 billion in cash and cash equivalents as of June. The value represents a drop compared to the same period in 2023, but it is still a considerable sum and could have a significant impact if the company decided to allocate part of this value in Bitcoin.