Gold advocate and economist Peter Schiff has escalated his criticism of MicroStrategy (MSTR), calling the company’s Bitcoin-centered business model a “Ponzi scheme” and warning that its end has begun.
In a series of posts on X, Schiff — Chief Economist & Global Strategist at Europac.com and Chairman of SchiffGold — argued that MicroStrategy’s financing strategy is unsustainable. He accused the company of relying on the sale of preferred shares to pay dividends despite lacking meaningful operating income.
Schiff wrote:
“But as MSTR has no income, unless it sells Bitcoin it can only pay dividends by selling more preferreds. In other words, it’s a Ponzi scheme.”
He further claimed that CEO Michael Saylor has begun selling stock not to acquire additional Bitcoin, but to raise U.S. dollars to meet the firm’s interest and dividend obligations. According to Schiff:
“Today is the beginning of the end of $MSTR. Saylor was forced to sell stock not to buy Bitcoin, but to buy U.S. dollars merely to fund MSTR’s interest and dividend obligations. The stock is broken. The business model is a fraud, and @Saylor is the biggest con man on Wall Street.”
Schiff also disputed Saylor’s description of the business model — which involves issuing digital credit via preferred shares paying 8%–10% dividends — arguing that the mechanism is structurally flawed.
Longtime Bitcoin Critic Expands on “Fake Asset” Narrative
A well-known Bitcoin skeptic, Schiff reiterated that the current decline in BTC is not simply the result of risk-off market behavior. He argued that the asset is fundamentally weak, stating that:
– the NASDAQ trades less than 2% below its all-time high,
– while Bitcoin remains 28% below its record price.
For Schiff, this divergence signals a “rotation from fake to real assets,” reinforcing his long-held belief that Bitcoin lacks intrinsic value.
MSTR’s Role in the Recent Market Dump Raise Discussion
MicroStrategy’s large-scale Bitcoin acquisition strategy has placed the company at the center of ongoing market conversations. In the past two months, some analysts have suggested that the broader decline in crypto prices may be partly tied to the firm’s leveraged exposure and the sheer size of its Bitcoin position.
At the same time, a number of market commentators continue to support MicroStrategy’s approach and Saylor’s long-term thesis. They note that the company’s premium valuation reflects investors’ trust in a management team capable of mobilizing global capital and executing large BTC purchases more efficiently than individual market participants.
Schiff’s Criticism Aligns With His Longstanding Warnings on Leverage
Schiff’s remarks build on his earlier concerns about speculative strategies involving borrowed capital. He has repeatedly argued that heavily leveraged Bitcoin positions could become vulnerable during periods of market stress, potentially triggering wider sell-offs.
MicroStrategy’s Current Holdings
MicroStrategy currently holds 641,692 BTC, acquired at an average price of $74,085 per coin. Even with recent price swings, the company still sits in unrealized gains.
The firm remains one of the most notable corporate examples of an aggressive, debt-enabled Bitcoin accumulation strategy — celebrated by supporters as forward-looking, yet criticized by skeptics like Schiff as inherently risky.
