MicroStrategy (MSTR), a software program developer that has grow to be a company bitcoin (BTC) vault, plans to promote as much as $500 million of inventory to fund extra purchases of the cryptocurrency.

A Friday submitting with the U.S. Securities and Alternate Fee revealed the inventory providing, which can be for “common company functions, together with the acquisition of bitcoin.”

The timing stands out as a result of it is the primary tangible signal that founder Michael Saylor, who not too long ago stepped down as CEO to grow to be government chairman and give attention to shopping for bitcoin, actually just isn’t backing off his audacious plan to show MicroStrategy right into a crypto proxy. Since 2020, he is used cash raised from inventory and bond choices to buy about 130,000 bitcoin, price greater than $2 billion.

MicroStrategy’s inventory has, consequently, grow to be tethered to the value of bitcoin – leading to a $1.2 billion loss on the bitcoin guess given this yr’s plunge. However the shares surged 12% Friday as bitcoin jumped nearly 10%. The inventory fell about 1.5%, although, in after-hours buying and selling following the announcement of the inventory providing, which is able to dilute the worth of present shares.

Cowen and BTIG, two of the most-prominent funding banks that covers crypto-related shares, are main the inventory providing.

Saylor and MicroStrategy have been not too long ago sued by the District of Columbia for allegedly evading taxes on Saylor’s earnings within the district.

Learn extra: Michael Saylor Misplaced Large within the Dot-Com Bubble and Bitcoin’s Crash. Now He Goals to Rebound Once more

Oliver Knight and Aoyon Ashraf contributed reporting.