Why Saylor’s STRC isn’t really a money market or bank account
In an incredible comparison on live national TV, Strategy founder Michael Saylor likened his Variable Rate Series A Perpetual Stretch Preferred Stock, commonly known as “Stretch” (STRC), to a money market or high yield bank account competitor.
In response to a question from a Bloomberg news anchor, Saylor said that his company is actively pursuing additional versions of STRC for non-USD investors, mentioning the euro, Japanese yen, Canadian dollar, and British pound as examples.
Referencing the possibility of a future STRC-like offering based on foreign currencies, Saylor explained his plan to spawn more versions of STRC.
“We think that there’s an opportunity to create Stretch-type instruments in euros, or yen, or Canadian currency, or pounds,” he said.
“In essence, everybody in the world would love to have a high yield bank account that yielded 10% or more. Or they’d love to have a money market that gave them double or triple their normal money market.
“We have shown that you can extract that sort of instrument from raw bitcoin, if you have enough bitcoin.
“So I think that we will continue to grow the AUM [Assets Under Management] of Stretch, and then we’ll look at opportunities to transform it into different currencies around the world.”
Although Saylor didn’t literally say that STRC was a bank account, the comparison was obvious.
‘Everybody in the world would love to have a high yield bank account that yielded 10%’
Despite Saylor‘s comparison, STRC isn’t any type of money market, high yield bank account, nor any type of bank account whatsoever.
Instead, it’s a stock that fluctuates in price on a daily basis. It’s traded between $92.20 and $98.49 per share since it started trading on July 30, 2025, and could theoretically trade at nearly any price in the future.
Of course, Strategy has promoted the price stability of STRC.
STRC pays holders a 10% annualized dividend rate as a percentage of its $100 per share stated amount. At issuance, the liquidation preference and stated amount of STRC were both set at $100 per share.
It also pays dividends on its stated amount, so if anyone buys it lower than $100 per share, its effective yield rises. For example, STRC closed for trading yesterday at $97.05 per share, offering an annualized effective yield of 10.3% due to the $2.95 share price discount below its $100 stated amount.
Because of this generous albeit variable rate that stays north of 10% as long as Strategy pays all dividends and STRC trades below $100, some investors might imagine STRC behaving like a money market fund or high yield bank account.
However, any comparison risks misunderstanding of the strictly controlled meanings of these terms.
Read more: Strategy loyalists sell MSTR, say Michael Saylor lied about dilution
STRC is not a money market or bank account
STRC is a publicly traded security. This means that anybody with any amount of it in their brokerage account can immediately liquidate all of it, during regular business hours of Nasdaq’s Global Select exchange, in a market sell order that will take out all prevailing bids — at any price — until that order is filled.
Immediately, the mark-to-market value of anyone else’s STRC portfolio would reflect that lower price.
Strategy doesn’t have standing bids in the market to absorb an unlimited amount of STRC sell orders. Instead, it’s offered two ways to counteract a falling STRC price.
First, Strategy has a redemption right at its election to pay $101 plus accumulated and unpaid regular dividends in cash to retire any whole number of circulating STRC.
This isn’t a live bid in the market. To the contrary, it is a choice that Strategy might make, in its sole discretion, if the price of STRC declines.
Second, Strategy is able to at its election increase the dividend rate of STRC to boost demand.
As of July 25, Strategy published its intention, subject to change in Strategy’s “sole and absolute discretion,” to adjust STRC’s dividend rate “in such manner as Strategy believes will maintain STRC Stock’s trading price at or close to its stated amount of $100 per share.”
Strategy’s key provision in both tactics for restoring the price of STRC. Rather than an obligation, the company is able to restore the price of STRC to near $100 — if management makes that decision.
This discretion contrasts entirely with the strict obligations of banks and credit unions that offer money markets or bank accounts.
Actual money markets or bank accounts
Depositors in US money markets at banks and credit unions enjoy FDIC or NCUA insurance up to $250,000 per depositor, per institution.
In other words, their deposits are guaranteed up to $250,000.
As supervised depository institutions, these institutions must fulfill their obligations to the OCC, FDIC, NCUA, and other regulators.
Even money markets at brokerages or mutual funds must comply with SEC Rule 2a-7 and other rules by committees like FINRA.
High yield checking and savings accounts carry even stricter oversight. Bank savings accounts have guaranteed value, including FDIC or NCUA insurance up to $250,000 per depositor, per institution.
Moreover, a bank account is a controlled term, similar to the descriptor “FDIC insured,” and requires compliance with FDIC rules to use this term when describing a bank account to customers.
STRC, in contrast, doesn’t comply with money market or bank account regulations. Although STRC has traded within 8% of its $100 stated amount during its brief listing on NasdaqGS since July 30, that relative stability could change at any time.
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