Bitcoin is extending its recent weakness overnight (hurt by US-Iran tensions escalating again), trading back below its 100DMA after Strategy (MSTR) sold 32 bitcoin between May 26 and May 31 at an average net price of $77,135 a coin, totaling $2.5 million (disclosed in an 8-K filing on Monday).
Proceeds from the bitcoin sales are expected to be used to fund distributions on preferred stock, the firm said.
This is the first time Strategy has sold bitcoin since December 2022, when the company offloaded 704 BTC, according to onchain analyst Ai Yi.
However, the firm reportedly bought 810 BTC just two days after the sale at a lower price in a tax loss trade.
Strategy now holds a total of 843,706 BTC following the reduction - worth around $61 billion - bought at an average price of $75,699 per bitcoin for a total cost of around $63.9 billion, including fees and expenses.
In addition, for the week, Strategy raised $128.3 million through its at-the-market (ATM) common stock program and allocated a small portion of the proceeds to increase its U.S. dollar cash reserve from $871 million to $900 million.
Anticipated?The Block.co reports that Strategy's bitcoin sale was anticipated.
Its executives previously said during its first-quarter 2026 earnings call that it may sell some of its holdings to fund dividends for STRC, Strategy's perpetual preferred stock designed to maintain a $100 par value and offer high yields to investors.
Saylor explained then that the sale would eventually help Strategy buy more bitcoin than it would sell to cover STRC's dividends.
He also noted that the firm's current position requires bitcoin to appreciate at 2.3% annually for its existing holdings to cover STRC dividend obligations indefinitely, without selling any common stock.
Today's sale announcement comes shortly after onchain data from Arkham Intelligence showed that Strategy moved roughly 411.6 BTC from its custody account on Coinbase Prime to a cold wallet address on the platform on May 28.
This prompted the odds of Strategy selling bitcoin before the end of 2026 to surge to 84%.
Strategy also noted it has purchased 2.6 times the amount of bitcoin mined in 2026 so far, describing MSTR as a "BitVac."
"Working Better"But, as CoinTelegraph.com reports, before the 8-K filing was released (but after the actual sales), Strategy chairman Michael Saylor on Sunday signaled the Bitcoin treasury company would be announcing fresh purchases of the cryptocurrency in the coming days.
The social media post comes just days ahead of a proxy vote that depends in large part on retailer shareholders to enable semi-monthly dividend payouts on the company’s STRC perpetual preferred stock.
“Working Better” was Saylor's tweet late Sunday morning to accompany a bubble chart tracking Strategy’s Bitcoin (BTC) purchases over the past nearly six years.
“Working Better” tweet. Source: Michael Saylor
That chart, from Iceland-registered StrategyTracker.com, has been consistently posted by Saylor in the days ahead of news of a purchase by the biggest publicly traded Bitcoin holder.
To be sure, any purchases to be announced will likely reflect the company bought at or below the average cost of previous BTC purchases.
Retail investors pressed to vote on STRC dividend changeStrategy is proposing to pay semi-monthly dividends on STRC, instead of monthly. The company claims that if approved and adopted, it will lead to reduced reinvestment lag, enhanced liquidity, market efficiency and increased price stability.
Just days ahead of the June 7 proxy vote deadline, Saylor and Strategy are pressing retail shareholders to return their proxy votes. On an internal company channel, Strategy’s investor relations team posted a message to all employees concerning the company’s 2026 annual meeting and provided links to the proposals under consideration by shareholders.
Part of message to Strategy employees from internal website. Source: Company filing on Edgar
“The amendment for STRC to pay semi-monthly dividends, needs 50% of all 85M shares outstanding as of April 17, 2026, to pass, which means every single vote counts,” read a May 28 post on Strategy’s verified feed on X.com.
CEO Phong Le posted a video a day earlier thanking STRC shareholders for their trust.
“I wanted to personally walk you through the proposed amendment and what it means for you,” he said as an introduction to the minute-and-a-half video.
Retail investors have shown limited interest in casting proxy votes. A November research note from The Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance revealed data that showed retail investors have consistently voted only about 29% of their owned shares during the past five proxy voting seasons. Institutional holders have voted about 77%.
A Cyclical Bottom?Bloomberg's Andre de Silva writes that while a steep record daily capital drain in US Bitcoin ETFs exposes immediate fatigue, past precedent suggests that such severe capitulation frequently cleanses short-term positioning and signals a cyclical bottom for the digital asset.
AI infrastructure and semiconductor equities have attracted the most attention, but because Bitcoin typically retains its status as a high-beta proxy for broader risk appetite during macro expansions, this temporary diversion of capital suggests that a classic catch-up rally remains on the table.
The initial euphoria surrounding US Bitcoin ETFs has cooled, giving way to an unprecedented streak of redemptions. Investors pulled $2.96 billion from the funds over 10 consecutive trading sessions to close out May, according ETF providers. That culminated in $2.4 billion in total net outflows for the month. This sharp reversal stands in contrast to the preceding two months of healthy institutional demand, which saw combined inflows of over $3.3 billion across March and April. The late-May selling pressure spared no one, with BlackRock’s usually resilient IBIT hit by a near-record single-day redemption following a massive off-exchange block trade.
This capital flight highlights a stark divergence recently between digital and traditional risk assets.
While global stock benchmarks like the S&P 500, Nasdaq, and Asia’s top indices such as the Kospi scale new heights, Bitcoin has decoupled from the broader market rally.
Even the prospects of supportive regulation have failed to arrest the slide. This includes the Senate Banking Committee recently advancing the landmark Clarity Act to establish a formal crypto market framework, an initiative that Polymarket prices with a 55% chance of being officially signed into law this year. Instead, capital is aggressively migrating toward memory chip and semiconductor companies and, as indicted by David Savage, including Asia, leaving Bitcoin looking sluggish by comparison.
Beneath the surface, this purge of the ETF channel acts as a reliable contrarian indicator.
Historically, when US Bitcoin ETF flows hit these types of extreme negative troughs, they frequently coincided with local market bottoms.
Similar washouts during early 2025 preceded sharp, multi-month recoveries once institutional selling hit exhaustion.
While crypto sentiment has dropped into ‘Fear’ territory according to the Alternative.me Crypto Fear and Greed Index, which is a multi-factor market sentiment tracker, this cleansing of overleveraged or short-term positions might be exactly what the digital asset needs to reset and build a sustainable floor.
Tyler Durden Mon, 06/01/2026 - 09:50The key event for markets outside of Iran (which is once again front and center following news that Iran is halting all exchange of messages with the US in protest of Israeli crimes in Lebanon) will be Friday’s US May employment report. Economists forecast a notable moderation in payroll growth compared with the relatively strong pace seen earlier in the spring. Headline nonfarm payrolls are expected to rise by around consensus 89k, down from 115k in April, while private payrolls are forecast at roughly 89k after 123k previously. This slowing partly reflects expectations that hiring in sectors that have been particularly strong in recent months – notably transportation and warehousing, as well as retail trade – begins to cool. Unemployment is expected to remain steady at 4.3% (consensus also 4.3%).
Ahead of Friday’s jobs report, the rest of the US labor market data flow should reinforce the Federal Reserve’s growing confidence that labor market conditions are stabilizing. Tomorrow, the April JOLTS report will shed light on the gross hiring and separation flows that underpinned last month’s solid net job gains. On Wednesday, the ADP private payrolls report is forecast to show a gain of around 118k, up from 109k previously, consistent with the strength seen in ADP’s high-frequency indicators. On Thursday, weekly initial jobless claims are expected to remain relatively low, although there is scope for a temporary uptick to around 220k, partly reflecting seasonal distortions associated with the Memorial Day holiday period.
Beyond the labor market, the focus will also be on whether recent resilience in US economic activity is sustained. Today, the May manufacturing ISM survey is forecast to rise to around 53.0 from 52.7 in April, supported by encouraging signals from regional Fed surveys. Later in the week, Thursday’s services ISM is expected to edge higher to roughly 53.9 from 53.6. That said, the backdrop for consumer spending remains mixed. Elevated petrol prices and tariff-related increases in core goods inflation are emerging headwinds, and economists therefore expect tomorrow’s unit motor vehicle sales to remain broadly flat at around 16.0 million annualized.
Alongside the data, Federal Reserve communication will be closely watched. On Wednesday, the Fed will publish its Beige Book, offering anecdotal evidence on economic conditions across districts. Fed speak is scattered through the week but it's mostly from officials who have spoken recently so it shouldn't break new ground.
Outside the US, Europe will see several important inflation releases. Today, the ECB publishes its consumer expectations survey, providing an update on household inflation views. Tomorrow, the Eurozone releases its flash CPI estimate for May, following national releases over recent days and today. Further inflation data are due on Thursday from Switzerland and Sweden, adding to the regional picture ahead of upcoming central bank meetings.
Central bank speakers are also in focus outside of the Fed. ECB President Lagarde is scheduled to speak on Thursday, while Bank of England Governor Bailey appears multiple times through the week, including tomorrow, Thursday and Friday. In Asia, Bank of Japan Governor Ueda is due to speak on Wednesday.
In China we've already had most of the PMIs over the weekend and this morning (see more above) but the private sector services PMI is out on Wednesday. In Japan, Friday brings labour cash earnings data. Our Chief Japan economist expects wage growth to slow to around 2.5% year on year, from 2.8% previously. Elsewhere in the region, Australia releases its Q1 GDP figures on Wednesday.
Finally, the corporate earnings calendar is also busy, with several high-profile releases. In the technology sector, results are due from Broadcom, Palo Alto Networks and CrowdStrike during the week, while consumer-focused names reporting include Inditex, Dollar General and Lululemon Athletica. See the day-by-day calendar at the end as usual for a fuller week ahead preview.
Source: Earnings WhispersCourtesy of DB, here is a day-by-day calendar of events
Monday June 1
Tuesday June 2
Wednesday June 3
Thursday June 4
Friday June 5
Looking at just the US, Goldman writes that the key economic data release this week is the employment report on Friday. There are several speaking engagements with Fed officials this week, including events with Governor Barr and Presidents Kashkari, Hammack, Logan, Barkin, and Daly.
Monday, June 1
Tuesday, June 2
Wednesday, June 3
Thursday, June 4
Friday, June 5
Source: DB, Goldman
Tyler Durden Mon, 06/01/2026 - 09:41Moderna is receiving up to $50 million to accelerate the development of an Ebola vaccine, as the virus continues to spread in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.
The funding is coming from global health organization CEPI, which told Reuters that it was possible to bring the vaccines to trial phase within a couple of months.
CEPI said it would also invest up to $8.6 million for a shot developed by the University of Oxford and manufactured by the Serum Institute of India, and an initial $3.2 million for a vaccine developed by the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative. -Reuters
"Every day counts in the race against this deadly disease," said Richard Hatchett, head of CEPI, adding that the vaccines are on "a not infinitely distant horizon."
That said, Hatchett also cautioned that vaccine development can be unpredictable, plus there's a 'challenging security situation' in eastern Congo that might make trials complex - which, includes (most recently) locals setting fire to an Ebola treatment center after they were stopped from retrieving the body of a dead man.
The crowd set fire to two tents fitted with eight beds run by a medical charity called The Alliance for International Medical Action (ALIMA), said Deputy Senior Commissioner Jean-Claude Mukendi, head of the public security department in Ituri Province.
Mukendi said the youths had not understood the protocols for burying a suspected Ebola victim.
“His family, friends, and other young people wanted to take his body home for a funeral even though the instructions from the authorities during this Ebola virus outbreak are clear,” Mukendi said. “All bodies must be buried according to the regulations.”
So far there have been 282 confirmed cases and 42 deaths in the recent outbreak, and around 1,100 suspected cases, according to the African CDC and the World Health Organization.
Beyond the DRC, nine cases have been confirmed in Uganda, including one death.
Two weeks to stop the uncontrollable anal bleeding and 50% chance of death?
Tyler Durden Mon, 06/01/2026 - 09:30