Vivek Ramaswamy's Strive acquires Semler Scientific in $675M all-stock deal

Strive, Inc., the investment firm co-founded by Vivek Ramaswamy, is making waves in the corporate Bitcoin landscape with the announcement of an all-stock acquisition of Semler Scientific.

The deal, estimated to be worth $675 million, strengthens Strive’s position in Bitcoin, putting the company in the top ranks of public cryptocurrency holders. The move is a huge step in the rising trend of companies adding Bitcoin to their balance sheets.

The acquisition of Semler Scientific is accompanied by a premium offer to Semler shareholders, who will receive $90.52 per share, 210% above the stock’s previous market value. Each Semler share will be exchanged for 21.05 Strive Class A stock shares. While the two companies’ boards unanimously approved the merger, it is still subject to standard closing conditions before the deal is completed.

In addition to the merger announcement, Strive announced a major Bitcoin purchase of 5,816 BTC at an average price of $116,000 per coin. This $675 million purchase takes Strive’s Bitcoin holdings to 5,886 BTC.

Upon closing, the combined entity will have over 10,900 BTC, cementing Strive’s position as one of the market’s most significant corporate Bitcoin holders. The deal follows similar moves from other corporate players, such as Metaplanet’s approval to pump up its Bitcoin treasury with an $884 million purchase.

Transitioning to a preferred-equity model

The post-merger company will use a preferred-equity structure, a move that Strive executives say will mitigate the risks of traditional debt financing. The preferred equity structure is designed to accelerate Bitcoin accumulation while lowering the potential volatility of debt maturities. 

According to Strive CEO Matt Cole, this merger makes the firm the dominant Bitcoin treasury company, one with a plan to far outpace the growth rate of Bitcoin itself in terms of per-share value.

Before its announcement of hoarding Bitcoin, Strive was recognized as an asset-management enterprise – it operates several exchange-traded funds, such as the $1 billion Strive 500 ETF (ticker STRV) that tracks the largest US companies.

Bitcoin’s role in corporate balance sheets and its price outlook

The Strive decision to increase its Bitcoin holdings is one of the greatest trends of companies integrating Bitcoin into their financial strategies. Semler Scientific, a medical device manufacturer, previously made headlines by declaring Bitcoin as its main treasury reserve, after Michael Saylor, founder of Strategy, Inc., did the same. 

Strategy is the world’s largest corporate holder of Bitcoin, with over 639,000 BTC acquired at an average of $73,971 per coin. Just today, Strategy purchased 850 BTC, as reported by Cryptopolitan. Bitcoin is currently trading at $112,940.64, registering a 5% decline in the past 24 hours. 

The cryptocurrency swung between $111,986 and $115,776 throughout the day, suggesting increased volatility and key technical signs on various timeframes. Bitcoin had a solid week, going up from below $115,000 to a monthly high of $118,000 on Thursday morning, just after the U.S. Federal Reserve cut interest rates. While this move was largely anticipated, it still generated short-lived, slight gains for BTC.

However, the cryptocurrency failed to maintain its momentum and fell back to $115,000 by Friday. Over the weekend, the stock traded sideways between $115,000 and $116,000, with a rejection at the high end on Saturday night. However, Bitcoin maintained the $115,500 support level on Sunday. Despite the recent dip, Bitcoin is still up 5% for September due to improving liquidity conditions.

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