UK Bitcoin company finds: Repurchasing its own shares earns 24% more than buying coins directly

Author: CryptoSlate

Compiled by: 深潮 TechFlow

深潮导读: When a Bitcoin vault company’s share price falls below the value of the Bitcoin it holds, the cheapest way to increase Bitcoin exposure per share may not be to buy more coins—it could be to repurchase its own stock. The UK-listed company B HODL tested this paradox with real money, and the result is surprising. What does it mean for the entire Bitcoin vault industry?

When a Bitcoin vault company’s trading price is below the value of the Bitcoin it holds, the cheapest way to increase Bitcoin exposure per share may be to repurchase its own stock.

The UK-listed company B HODL tested this inversion phenomenon during its first week of buybacks. In the first week, the company paid about £37,985, excluding fees, to cancel 823,400 shares—resulting in a total number of satoshis per share per £1 of cash spent that was about 24% higher than buying Bitcoin with the same cash.

That 24% edge is based on data before fees, and the figures do not show the full growth in net asset value per share (NAV).

B HODL’s official dashboard as of July 19 shows it holds 166.487 BTC. The share price is 5.25 pence, giving a market cap of £7.39M. Using the displayed Bitcoin price of £48,237, the value of these Bitcoins is about £8.03M—leaving a shortfall of about £646k.

Based on the latest announced number of canceled shares after the fact, and using the same share price, the equity value is about £7.38M—approximately £652k lower than the Bitcoin value, or 8.1%. Both ends of the comparison are in constant motion.

Why buying stock beats buying Bitcoin

B HODL’s £100k share repurchase authorization took effect on July 9. Disclosures covering purchases on July 9, 10, 13, 15, and 16 show a total of 823,400 shares, with a weighted average price of 4.613 pence. Excluding fees, those purchases used about 38% of the authorization.

After the cancellation announcement, the number of shares outstanding fell from 141,366,091 to 140,542,691. Keeping the 166.487 BTC unchanged, total satoshis per share rose from 117.77 to 118.46—an increase of 0.69 satoshis, or 0.59%.

At the same Bitcoin price of £48,237, £37,985 can buy about 0.787 BTC. Allocating this purchase across the original number of shares would increase about 0.557 satoshis per share, while the buyback produced a 0.690 satoshi uplift. Under these matching assumptions, the per-pound value enhancement of the canceled equity is about 24% higher.

Why B HODL can trade its own shares

B HODL kept its at-the-market (ATM) issuance program open while conducting buybacks. Its ATM only allows issuance of shares when issuing them is accretive under the company’s Bitcoin-adjusted NAV (mNAV) framework.

Together, these tools create a capital allocation switch: when issuing equity can increase Bitcoin exposure per share, issue equity; then, when the shares themselves offer cheaper Bitcoin exposure, repurchase equity.

The company’s latest interim balance sheet is historical data. As a result, what is shown in the first week is the increase in satoshis per share under set assumptions, not the increase in the current NAV per share.

For other Bitcoin vault companies trading at discounts to Bitcoin value per share, this takeaway is conditional, but very clear.

Whether this is the right move still depends on cash reserves, debt, trading liquidity, and operating needs—this discipline is increasingly shaping the wider vault industry.