Crypto01 October, 20262 min read
Bitcoin Policy Institute Urges MSCI To Withdraw Non-Operating Company Rule Excluding Strategy And Metaplanet
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Bitcoin Policy Institute criticizes MSCI's non-operating company proposal targeting Strategy and Metaplanet. Exclusion could remove Strategy and Metaplanet from major indexes, triggering billions in trades.
9 outlets told this the same way.
MSCI faces bitcoin-tinged pushback
The Bitcoin Policy Institute urged MSCI to withdraw or opt-in its proposed “non-operating company” rule that could remove bitcoin treasury firms such as Strategy and Metaplanet from MSCI’s Global Investable Market Index. The think tank said MSCI closed its public comment period on Sept. 30 and is expected to announce a decision by Oct. 16, with any changes taking effect as part of the November 2026 index review. MSCI’s own simulation identified three companies that would be excluded under the proposed methodology: Strategy, Metaplanet, and Yellow Cake. Connor Brown framed the issue as a concentration of power, writing, "This much discretion in this few hands is a chokepoint in the U.S. financial system."
BPI targets MSCI’s process
The Bitcoin Policy Institute said metadata showed the presentation behind MSCI’s consultation was stored in an internal folder labeled for digital asset treasury companies, and it argued that finding "warrants asking whether its broader language carried forward" the earlier effort to exclude such firms. The paper said MSCI would first assess whether a company holds substantial operating assets before applying five additional financial tests, and it questioned reliance on “operating assets” as a non-standard balance-sheet category under US Generally Accepted Accounting Principles or International Financial Reporting Standards. The institute warned that the ambiguity could give MSCI significant discretion in classifying assets such as cash, investments, construction projects, and strategic holdings. The Crypto Times said public comments on the current proposal closed on September 30, with a decision expected by October 16, and it added that the changes are proposed to take effect as part of the November 2026 Index Review.
Index changes could force selling
BigGo Finance said MSCI’s own simulation could trigger mechanical selling by passive funds tracking the affected benchmarks, regardless of underlying financial performance. JPMorgan analysts estimated in 2025 that Strategy could face approximately $2.8 billion in outflows if excluded from MSCI indexes, and the paper described this as mechanical selling driven by index rules rather than changes in business fundamentals. The Crypto Times reported that MSCI’s simulation using May 2026 data would exclude Strategy, Metaplanet, and Yellow Cake plc, a company that holds uranium. The Bitcoin Policy Institute also called on MSCI to publish clearer and reproducible criteria for determining which companies qualify for its broad-market indexes, warning that opacity in the review process creates structural risk for shareholders of affected companies.