Arca Pushes Back on Saylor's AI Explanation for Bitcoin's 14% Slide, Cites 32 BTC Sale

Crypto investment firm Arca is rejecting Strategy chairman Michael Saylor's explanation that artificial intelligence infrastructure spending drove last week's bitcoin selloff, instead attributing the decline to the company's sale of 32 BTC. Arca Chief Investment Officer Jeff Dorman wrote in his weekly note that the selling pressure was "clearly due to the Saylor/MSTR news," calling claims that AI capital rotation was responsible "gaslighting from MSTR and other Bitcoin bulls." Bitcoin, the leading cryptocurrency by market value, fell nearly 14% to $60,000 last week after Strategy disclosed the 32 BTC sale on June 1.

Dorman's argument focused less on the size of the transaction, which he estimated at roughly $2.5 million, and more on what it signaled to the market. In Arca's view, the sale suggested that Strategy may need to liquidate significantly more bitcoin to meet cash dividend obligations on its preferred shares, including STRC. Saylor has framed the environment differently, attributing the slide to capital being absorbed by AI infrastructure spending. "The AI buildout is absorbing capital at a historic scale, creating temporary pressure across global markets. That does not weaken Bitcoin. It strengthens the case for scarce, liquid, digital capital. Bitcoin remains the premier asset for the long term," Saylor said.

Arca's CIO outlined what he described as a series of missteps by Saylor over the past three weeks, noting that Strategy used its only cash to pay off zero-coupon debt before signaling the $2.5 million bitcoin sale, an amount Dorman said is barely enough to cover one month's preferred dividends. Dorman added that Strategy currently has roughly five months of cash flow remaining, leaving the market uncertain about subsequent actions. Strategy still holds 845,256 BTC.

Dorman said there is one scenario that could stabilize the market, though he does not expect Saylor to pursue it. If Strategy filed an 8-K disclosing that it had raised $2 billion to $4 billion by selling MSTR stock and bitcoin, an amount Dorman said would cover preferred dividends through September 2028, he believes bitcoin would rally sharply as the forced-seller overhang is removed.