Global index maker MSCI postpones decision on dropping cryptocurrency-focused companies

Global index provider MSCI has postponed a decision on whether to change the way it will change companies with significant exposure to digital assets, maintaining the status quo following a consultation that raised questions around classification, balance sheet volatility and index construction.

Results of the assessment published Tuesday was about so-called digital asset treasury companies, or DATCOs, a category that includes companies whose balance sheets are heavily weighted toward holdings such as Bitcoin or other crypto assets.

The study “confirmed institutional investors’ concerns that some DATCOs exhibit characteristics similar to mutual funds, which are not eligible for inclusion” for their indices, the statement said.

The decision tentatively means the index will be eligible for digital asset treasury and infrastructure companies, but leaves open how such companies might ultimately be treated in global equity benchmarks.

It also examined whether these companies still meet the definition of operating activities for index purposes, or whether their asset exposure makes them more like investment vehicles under existing index rules.

“DATCOs may represent a subset of a broader group of entities whose business activities are primarily investment-oriented rather than operational,” the statement reads.

MSCI said the consultation results apply to the February 2026 Index Review, confirming that no changes will be made to the index treatment of digital asset treasury companies in that cycle.

The decision means that DATCOs currently included in MSCI’s global indices will remain eligible during the review, provided they continue to meet all other inclusion requirements.

Strategy, which pioneered the digital asset treasury model, called it concludes “a strong result for neutral indexation and economic reality.”

Shares of MSTR rose roughly 6.9% to $168.7 in after-hours trading after the MSCI postponement, according to Yahoo Finance facts.

Last year, Wall Street saw one golf in publicly traded companies adopting crypto-treasury strategies, raising equity and debt to accumulate digital assets as balance sheet reserves.

What started with Strategy’s aggressive Bitcoin buying expanded as other companies pursued similar approaches, positioning corporate balance sheets as a vehicle for institutional cryptocurrency exposure.

As the trend spread, these digital asset treasuries attracted strong investor interest, with some trading at premiums more related to token holdings than operational performance. These premiums will follow later in the year narrowed as crypto volatility and sustainability issues arise.

The cycle shifted from rapid adoption to reassessment, prompting regulators, index providers and investors to debate whether crypto treasury firms represent a sustainable business model or a market-specific phase.