Metaplanet tips first operating profit in 7 years, boosted by Bitcoin
2024-12-18
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Bitcoin stacking firm Metaplanet expects to record its first consolidated operating profit in seven years just months after adding the cryptocurrency to its balance sheet for the first time.
The Japanese investment firm on Dec. 18 said it expects to generate 890 million Japanese yen ($5.8 million) in revenue for the fiscal year ending Dec. 31, 2024, compared to just 261 million Japanese yen in the previous fiscal year. It tipped its operating profit to hit 270 million Japanese yen, up from 468 million Japanese yen in losses last year.
Metaplanet says much of this revenue has come from it selling Bitcoin BTCUSD put options, which have generated 520 million Japanese yen in income.
“Combined with the strong performance of the hotel business [...] the company is on track to record consolidated operating profit for the first time since FY2017,” it said in a statement. 
Metaplanet is a publicly traded Tokyo-based investment firm that made a major pivot to Bitcoin in April this year, adopting it as a treasury asset to hedge against currency depreciation. 
It also owns and operates the Royal Oak Hotel in Tokyo’s Gotanda district through its consolidated subsidiary, Wen Tokyo Co. 
Bitcoin treasury operations added as a new business line 
Metaplanet says it wants to move beyond just simply accumulating Bitcoin as part of its treasury management strategy. 
In a separate investor disclosure on Dec. 18, Metaplanet says it will now be establishing “Bitcoin accumulation and management” as a formal business line, which will see it employ loans, equity, convertible bonds and other financial instruments to “efficiently purchase and hold Bitcoin.”
It also says it will continue to utilize put option sales as a key revenue driver going forward. 
Thank you, @saylor, for recognizing @Metaplanet_JP as one of the Bitcoin Standard companies! Your leadership continues to inspire us as we build toward a brighter future on the foundation of Bitcoin. pic.twitter.com/dIUe2sbzD0
Put options are contractual agreements giving the owner who buys the put option the ability to sell an underlying asset at a pre-agreed value called a “strike price” to the issuer, in this case — Metaplanet. It’s a way for investors to lock in a minimum selling price for an asset they own to avoid further losses.
Metaplanet, in turn, earns a premium for each put option contract it sells, whether or not the option is exercised. If the option is exercised, it will allow it to buy Bitcoin in line with its strategy. 
Metaplanet says it also aims to establish revenue streams from Bitcoin-related marketing activities through its recently acquired license to operate a Japanese version of the news outlet Bitcoin Magazine.
Metaplanet is the second-largest corporate Bitcoin holder in Asia after Boyaa Interactive and now holds 1,142 Bitcoin worth approximately $119.4 million. 
On Dec. 16, Metaplanet announced its fourth bond issuance worth just under 4.5 billion Japanese yen ($30 million) with the aim of accumulating more Bitcoin, along with a plan to issue another 5 billion Japanese yen private placement ordinary bonds. 