Satsuma Technology is under pressure from its investors, including Pantera Capital, to liquidate its Bitcoin treasury to reimburse shareholders.
The internal pressure is reminiscent of how Empery Digital was also pressured to sell its Bitcoin to buy back its shares, abandoning the market playbook popularized by Michael Saylor’s Strategy, which continues to accumulate Bitcoin for its digital asset treasury (DAT).
Just like Empery Digital, the London-listed company Satsuma Technology Plc (LSE: SATS) is facing intense internal pressure to liquidate its treasury. Satsuma’s investors, led by crypto giant Pantera Capital, are demanding that the firm sell its remaining $50.26 million Bitcoin (BTC) hoard and wind down operations.
Empery shareholders forced sales when BTC was struggling, but current data shows Bitcoin surging toward the $80,000 resistance level as of April 23, 2026. So why is Satsuma being forced to sell?
Satsuma adopted an AI-powered Bitcoin treasury strategy in August 2025, raising £164 million (approximately $221 million) via convertible loan notes. At the time, Bitcoin was above $126,000 in early October due to the post-election euphoria.
Since that peak, the price of Bitcoin has been slashed by nearly 40% during a prolonged bear market, and Satsuma’s stock has been decimated.
According to Bloomberg and confirmed by Satsuma’s executive chairman Ranald McGregor-Smith, shareholders “have requested a return of capital.”
Satsuma initially did not name names, but sources identified Pantera Capital Management as the primary agitator. Pantera owns approximately 7% of Satsuma and runs a dedicated digital asset treasury fund.
Satsuma’s stock has fallen more than 99% from a June 2025 peak, currently trading around 21 to 24 pence ($0.28). The company’s market capitalization, which is approximately £24.65 million ($33.3 million), is now well below the value of its 645.7 BTC, currently worth about $50.26 million.
Satsuma bought its stack at an average cost of $113,512 per BTC. At current prices of about $77,500, the firm is sitting on a loss of approximately 31.42%.
Satsuma’s CEO, Henry Elder, and CFO, Andrew Smith, resigned in March 2026.
Is the ‘digital asset treasury’ trade dead?
Empery Digital (NASDAQ: EMPD) is actively selling Bitcoin to fund share buybacks. In an effort to “close the gap” between its share price and net asset value (NAV), the company sold 20 BTC at an average price of $74,425 per coin, raising $1.5 million in gross proceeds.
Empery has bought back 26.2 million shares at an average price of $5.71 per share, well below its 52-week high of $44.09. The company currently has 2,914 BTC left, and the market is betting they will have to sell more just to stay solvent.
On the other hand, Michael Saylor’s Strategy recently announced its largest weekly purchase since November 2024. The company acquired 34,164 BTC for approximately $2.54 billion at an average price of $74,395 per Bitcoin.
Unlike Satsuma or Empery, Strategy’s Bitcoin purchases are supported by a new financial engine called STRC preferred stock. The stock pays a massive 11.5% annual dividend. Strategy has so far raised $2.17 billion from STRC sales and another $366 million from common stock (MSTR) offerings to fund its Bitcoin purchase.
The company now holds 815,061 BTC, roughly 76% of all Bitcoin owned by public companies. Michael Saylor is targeting 1 million BTC by the end of 2026.
