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$20,000 per unit: Strategy CEO defends the sell-low, buy-high bitcoin round-trip

$20,000 per unit. That is the spread on Strategy's bitcoin round-trip: sold at $60,000, repurchased at $80,000, a sequence that looks, in spot terms, like a textbook example of selling low and buying high. Chief executive Phong Le's answer…

By Kwame Asante·Sep 2, 2026·1 min read·crypto·$BTC

Key takeaways

  • Strategy sold bitcoin at $60,000 per unit and later repurchased it at $80,000, a $20,000 per-unit spread that looks like selling low and buying high.
  • The $20,000 gap equals a 33% premium paid to re-enter bitcoin relative to the exit price.
  • CEO Phong Le defended the round-trip, calling it the right trade and arguing the spot comparison is the wrong frame.
  • Le's defense rests on corporate finance, specifically the cost of capital, rather than on market timing.
  • Le argued that if the cost of holding or deploying capital between exit and repurchase exceeded the per-unit re-entry premium, the trade is rational on a fully-loaded basis.

$20,000 per unit. That is the spread on Strategy's bitcoin round-trip: sold at $60,000, repurchased at $80,000, a sequence that looks, in spot terms, like a textbook example of selling low and buying high. Chief executive Phong Le's answer is that the frame is wrong. He cited corporate capital costs and called it the right trade.

Price point Level (reported)
Exit $60,000
Re-entry $80,000
Per-unit spread $20,000

The $20,000 gap represents a 33% premium paid to re-enter $BTC relative to the exit price. That arithmetic is the source of the criticism Le was responding to.

His defense rests on a corporate finance argument, not market timing. Capital carries a cost, and if the expense of holding or deploying it between the exit and repurchase exceeded the per-unit re-entry premium, the round-trip can be rational on a fully-loaded basis even when a spot comparison says otherwise. Le explicitly called the sequence the right trade.

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Source: theblock.co
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Frequently asked

What was the price spread on Strategy's bitcoin round-trip?

Strategy exited at $60,000 per unit and re-entered at $80,000, producing a $20,000 per-unit spread, or a 33% premium over the exit price.

How did CEO Phong Le justify buying bitcoin back at a higher price?

He argued the trade should be judged on a fully-loaded basis including the cost of capital, not on a simple spot-price comparison, and called it the right trade.

Why could the round-trip be rational despite appearing to sell low and buy high?

If the expense of holding or deploying capital between the exit and repurchase exceeded the per-unit re-entry premium, the round-trip can be rational even when a spot comparison suggests otherwise.

What criticism was Phong Le responding to?

He was responding to criticism that the sequence—selling at $60,000 and repurchasing at $80,000—amounted to selling low and buying high at a 33% premium.