Strategy Says No to Japan for 12 Months as Metaplanet Moves Ahead

Michael Saylor has confirmed that Strategy will stay out of Japan’s digital credit market for at least the next 12 months. The decision removes a major competitor from the region and gives Metaplanet a clear window to advance its Bitcoin-linked credit offerings. 

Strategy Steps Back and Leaves Japan Open

At the Bitcoin MENA 2025 conference, Strategy’s executive chairman, Michael Saylor, was asked directly whether the company would bring its perpetual preferred equity products to Japan. His response was firm and simple. Strategy is not to enter Japan within the next 12 months. This effectively gives Metaplanet a full year to establish itself in a market where only a handful of perpetual preferred instruments currently exist.

While Strategy pauses in Japan, it continues expanding its preferred equity offerings elsewhere. The company already operates four perpetual preferred products in the United States and recently added a euro-denominated version in Europe. For now, Japan remains the one major region that Strategy is choosing to stay out of.

Metaplanet is using this opening to move ahead with two new digital credit instruments named Mercury and Mars. Japan’s perpetual preferred market is small and slow, with only five listed products, but Metaplanet aims to energize it by becoming the sixth and seventh issuer. 

Mercury is built to act like Strategy’s STRK and promises a 4.9 percent yield in yen along with convertibility. That payout is nearly ten times higher than what most Japanese bank deposits offer today. Mercury is currently in its pre-IPO stage with a target listing in early 2026.

Mars follows a different structure and mirrors Strategy’s STRC. It is designed as a short-duration high-yield credit instrument for investors wanting income with fewer long-term commitments. Both products reflect Metaplanet’s goal of leading Japan’s next phase of crypto-linked credit growth.

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Different Views on the Future of Digital Credit

Saylor expects around twelve companies worldwide to issue digital credit, but Simon Gerovich disagrees and says strong balance sheets matter more. Metaplanet will focus on Japan first before expanding into parts of Asia.

Metaplanet continues using Bitcoin-backed debt. In November, it secured a 130 million dollar loan under its 500 million dollar credit facility. The firm now holds 30,823 BTC worth about 2.7 billion dollars, with an average buy price of 108,070 dollars, leaving roughly 636 million dollars in unrealized losses with Bitcoin still below that level.

The Mars announcement also comes at a weak moment for corporate Bitcoin treasuries. DefiLlama shows inflows dropping to 1.32 billion dollars in November, the lowest of 2025. Strategy’s stock fell over 35%, while Metaplanet slipped more than 20% as Bitcoin retreated nearly 25% from its October highs.

With Bitcoin near 90k, Japan’s digital credit push is becoming one of the few major developments shaping sentiment in this market phase.

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