Strive CEO Matt Cole criticizes MSCI's Bitcoin exclusion proposal

MSCI: MSCI is a major global index provider whose benchmarks guide trillions of dollars in passive investment flows. It has conducted consultations on eligibility rules for its Global Investable Market Indexes, including frameworks to screen out non-operating companies based on operating assets, cash flows, and other financial ratios. Industry participants including Strive have submitted comments on the proposals as of mid-to-late 2026. Strive: Strive is a Nasdaq-listed structured finance company and institutional asset manager that has adopted Bitcoin as its hurdle rate for capital deployment and maintains a substantial Bitcoin treasury on its balance sheet. The firm focuses on balance sheet management and issues structured products, including digital credit securities, where Bitcoin holdings serve as a core input enabling its financial intermediation activities. Its CEO Matt Cole recently responded directly to MSCI's index proposals, defending the company's model against classification as a non-operating entity. Matt Cole: Matt Cole is CEO and Chairman of Strive, with a background that includes 15 years overseeing more than $70 billion in fixed income at CalPERS. He has been a vocal proponent of Bitcoin treasury strategies for public companies and recently issued a detailed response to MSCI's proposal to reclassify Bitcoin-heavy firms as non-operating in its indexes. Cole argues that issuing digital credit founded on a BTC balance sheet constitutes a legitimate financial intermediation business. Index Consultation: MSCI has proposed new eligibility screens to identify and potentially exclude non-operating companies from its broad equity indexes, with public consultation feedback incorporated into ongoing deliberations. Business Model Defense: Strive maintains that its Bitcoin treasury functions as an essential business input for structured finance products rather than a passive holding, positioning the firm as an active financial intermediary.