Louisiana retirement fund reveals $3.2 million Bitcoin-linked fairness wager
Louisiana’s fundamental public retirement system has quietly elevated its crypto footprint through the use of microstrategy inventory as an oblique technique to faucet into Bitcoin’s value efficiency.
The Louisiana State Workers’ Retirement System (LASERS) has disclosed a $3.2 million place in Technique Inc. (MSTR), highlighting how public funds are turning to fairness markets for Bitcoin publicity as an alternative of shopping for the asset immediately.
In keeping with the newest portfolio report, LASERS holds 17,900 MSTR shares within the Bitcoin-focused software program firm. On the time of the disclosure, the microstrategy inventory value was about $179 per share, valuing the stake at roughly $3.2 million.
LASERS joins different US public funds utilizing MSTR as a Bitcoin proxy
LASERS oversees roughly $15.6 billion in retirement belongings for Louisiana state workers. Its new MSTR allocation indicators a broader effort to achieve institutional bitcoin proxy publicity through regulated securities. Furthermore, the fund is shifting in keeping with different US public pensions exploring Bitcoin by way of listed corporations.
This method locations Louisiana alongside New York’s public fund, which boosted its personal MSTR holdings to $50 million in December 2025. Whereas Louisiana’s place is smaller in greenback phrases, it reinforces the development of state-level establishments utilizing company steadiness sheets as a bridge into crypto markets.
Along with MSTR, the LASERS portfolio options giant positions in main US expertise names, together with Nvidia, Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, and Alphabet. That mentioned, the MSTR allocation stands out as a result of it’s immediately linked to Bitcoin reserves slightly than conventional software program revenues.
MicroStrategy’s 190,000+ BTC stack underpins the funding case
Technique, chaired by Michael Saylor, has remodeled from an enterprise software program supplier into probably the most aggressive company consumers of Bitcoin. As of its most up-to-date submitting, the corporate holds greater than 190,000 BTC on its steadiness sheet.
The agency not too long ago bought 13,627 BTC for $1.25 billion, paying a median of $91,519 per coin. Nevertheless, this accumulation technique has additionally elevated the corporate’s sensitivity to crypto market swings, making its fairness behave extra like a leveraged Bitcoin instrument than a standard tech inventory.
Bitcoin itself not too long ago surged above $97,000 earlier than sliding again beneath $93,000, underlining the volatility that funds settle for once they use listed autos for microstrategy bitcoin publicity. Regardless of the uneven value motion, Technique’s reported market internet asset worth (mNAV) stands at 1.07, displaying the shares commerce at a premium to the underlying Bitcoin worth.
Market efficiency, upside hopes, and valuation premium
Many institutional buyers deal with MSTR as a de facto Bitcoin tracker with company leverage. Louisiana’s $3.2 million wager means that LASERS expects Bitcoin to get well and doubtlessly push MSTR nearer to its 12‑month peak close to $450. Furthermore, the place comes regardless of vital latest draw back within the share value.
Over the previous six months, Technique shares have fallen by 61%, reflecting each crypto sector weak point and issues over the corporate’s debt-fueled growth. Nevertheless, the inventory gained 4% final week and closed Friday up 1.6% at $173, signaling renewed purchaser curiosity after the steep drawdown.
For long-term allocators, the present inventory value microstrategy stage might seem enticing relative to earlier highs, though the continuing premium to mNAV highlights that buyers are nonetheless paying additional for entry to the Bitcoin treasury and Saylor’s technique.
Criticism of Technique’s mannequin and leverage-heavy method
The corporate’s heavy reliance on Bitcoin accumulation has drawn scrutiny from elements of Wall Avenue and the crypto business. Some observers argue that its dependence on new capital makes the enterprise inherently dangerous, particularly throughout extended bear markets.
Monetary analyst Herb Greenberg has gone so far as labeling Technique a “quasi Ponzi scheme,” pointing to restricted working revenue from core software program merchandise and frequent use of debt and fairness choices to finance Bitcoin purchases. That mentioned, supporters counter that the agency is successfully working in its place asset automobile slightly than a standard software program home.
Michael Saylor has repeatedly defended the playbook. In an interview with CNBC, he in contrast Technique’s financing mannequin to property builders in New York, arguing that “similar to builders in Manhattan subject extra debt when actual property rises, we use related strategies” to develop Bitcoin holdings throughout bull cycles.
Public funds lean into crypto-linked equities
Public retirement funds more and more favor crypto-linked equities as an alternative of direct token custody, citing regulatory readability and established market infrastructure. In that context, microstrategy inventory affords a well-known brokerage-based route for gaining crypto publicity inside present compliance frameworks.
Technique has additionally experimented with most popular share choices branded below names corresponding to “Strike” and “Stretch”. These devices promised fastened dividends structured round Bitcoin efficiency, successfully mixing conventional revenue options with crypto-linked upside. Nevertheless, in addition they introduce complexity for danger managers assessing capital construction and payout circumstances.
In keeping with Saylor, these merchandise match right into a broader effort to make Technique perform like a high-beta Bitcoin automobile for fairness buyers. He has mentioned that whereas the inventory is “not a high-yield checking account,” it will possibly resemble one throughout sturdy bull phases when Bitcoin costs surge and steadiness sheet beneficial properties widen.
Institutional adoption by way of regulated buildings set to develop
The LASERS transfer provides Louisiana to a rising checklist of US states experimenting with digital asset publicity by way of listed corporations and different regulated buildings. Furthermore, it underscores how pension managers are searching for upside from crypto markets whereas making an attempt to keep away from direct custody and on-chain operational dangers.
As Bitcoin’s market cap expands and extra corporates comply with Technique’s playbook, analysts anticipate further public retirement fund funding through equities and structured merchandise. For now, Louisiana’s $3.2 million stake could also be modest relative to its $15.6 billion in belongings, however it marks a transparent sign that crypto-linked methods are getting into mainstream institutional portfolios.
In abstract, Louisiana’s allocation to MSTR highlights the rising position of regulated, Bitcoin-heavy corporations in bridging conventional pensions and digital belongings, whilst volatility, leverage, and business-model issues proceed to drive debate across the long-term sustainability of this method.