As Bitcoin treasury companies are becoming the new initial coin offerings, people are starting to remember how it all ended in 2018. While ICOs and Bitcoin treasury companies are definitely not the same, critics outline some similarities. More than that, recently, the CEO of the treasury company Nakamoto, David Bailey, compared his business to “the early day ICOs.” Calling something a bubble until it bursts may not be correct, but it is possible to point out similarities and differences between ICOs and treasuries to test the potential future of the latter.
The rise of Bitcoin treasury companies
MicroStrategy was founded in 1989, and since then, it has tested several grounds. Only in 2020 did MicroStrategy focus on issuing debt to buy bitcoin, promising its shareholders indirect exposure to owning BTC held by the company. In 2025, the company changed its name to Strategy.
Strategy attracted attention. MSTR stock’s value has gained 500% since early 2024. Investors who don’t want or cannot (because of the laws) buy BTC directly but want to enjoy yield on growth opportunities.
After Donald Trump’s victory in the 2024 election and a new round of interest in Bitcoin, Bitcoin treasury companies began to emerge with ever-increasing speed. Multi-million dollar purchases of Bitcoin decrease BTC price volatility, creating increased demand for it. Strategy alone bought more Bitcoin in 2025 than miners produced. Such terms as “supply shock” and “opportunity cost” reflect how reluctant people become to sell any amount of BTC.
Just like Strategy chair Michael Saylor is advocating for Bitcoin and Strategy online and offline on a daily basis, Strategy copycats rely on influencers in the crypto sector to promote their stocks. ProCap BTC is headed by Anthony Pompliano, Metaplanet’s voice is Simon Gerovich, XXI Capital hired a Strike CEO, Jack Mallers, while Nakamoto is helmed by Bitcoin Magazine CEO David Bailey, etc. All of these companies were founded or fully switched to a Bitcoin purchasing strategy in 2024 or 2025.
Interestingly enough, Bitcoin treasuries do not offer their clients any type of interaction with cryptocurrencies and do not hold crypto themselves. Instead, they outsource it to Coinbase and other centralized exchanges.
What do ICOs and Bitcoin treasury companies have in common?
While most crypto influencers are busy highlighting the growth of Bitcoin treasuries’ BTC holdings and presenting new purchases as “bullish,” many in the crypto community find the latest trend disturbing. They emphasize that these companies are rooted in TradFi and present regular public and private companies, except that they don’t produce anything and just buy Bitcoin using borrowed assets.
More than that, critics are concerned about possible risks as all these companies are centralized. As many of them are seemingly driven by FOMO and don’t have elaborate risk management strategies, they may end up not as sustainable as Strategy who managed to survive the 2022 crypto winter. Experts warn that newer companies may have to sell their bitcoins when the bear market starts. If it happens, it may trigger the ripple effect that would impact giants, including Strategy.
Some compare Bitcoin treasury companies’ hype with the ICO era hype and remind everyone that it ended in a disaster. In 2018, the crypto market lost 85% of its value. This crash was harder than the market crash associated with the dot-com bubble burst that triggered a 78% drop. By December 2017, less than a third of companies that ran ICOs reached the goals of their campaigns.
Proponents of Bitcoin treasuries notice that comparing ICOs and treasuries is not correct. The line between the two is that Bitcoin treasuries are legitimate public and private companies that allow their clients to benefit from Bitcoin price movements through a standard method, such as shares. At the same time, ICOs were dubious firms that just promised to create something valuable–”were selling vaporware,” as Joe Consorti, working for Theya and Horizon, put it in his tweet.
However, many in the crypto community outline various similarities between ICOs and treasuries. First off, unlike the trustless Bitcoin network, ICOs and treasuries involve trust. The companies in the ICO era managed to raise capital because they were able to convince many retail investors that they would release a strong product and their tokens would skyrocket. The treasury companies’ investors trust that these companies are not going to sell their bitcoins (Saylor and Gerovich both state they are never going to sell bitcoins) or dilute their assets further.
Lack of transparency on Bitcoin holdings of these companies increases the role of trust for their investors. Companies that held ICO campaigns and modern-day treasuries are accused of insider trading, lack of vesting period, lack of competence (in certain instances), the rug-pull potential, etc. For Bitcoin purists, the need to “trust” someone is an inherent flaw of any new trendy novelty on the market.
A founder of the company Stack Wisely who uses the moniker Stack Hodler, explained why he gets the ICO vibes from the Bitcoin treasury companies’ hype, calling these companies “this cycle’s shitcoins.” According to Stack Hodler, “These companies are creating shares out of thin air to sell to people hoping to outperform Bitcoin.” As a healthy alternative to treasuries, Stack Hodler sees “businesses that create economic value via products and services, and then store their profits in Bitcoin,” adding that it “will bring lasting value to the Bitcoin network.”
Finally, David Bailey of a Bitcoin treasury company called Nakamoto found no better comparison of how he feels about making treasury business than saying, “it’s kind of like the early day ICOs.” Probably, he wasn’t thinking about how this era ended when he remarked. Here’s what he said:
“It’s kind of like early days ICOs, where you have a posse of people you bring into that token. We have a posse of people that we are bringing into the treasury companies. We have the best practices nailed down on how to do it.”
While some critics see Strategy as an outstanding treasury that deserves trust, others dismiss all the treasury companies altogether. Usually, critics don’t pay attention to the fact that some institutions cannot hold bitcoins directly; however, many of their arguments hit the mark. Another frequent comparison is SPACs, blank companies selling shares and promises.
The discussion continues. However, the Bitcoin maxis’ voices have been on the rise as of late. Here’s what Scott Melker, known as the host of the Wolf of All Streets podcast, wrote in his newsletter after suggesting that many crypto treasury companies are scams:
“I’m not here to tell any of you to stop trading or speculating if you know what you’re doing. Find your edge. Use it. But if you’re not truly confident, here’s the simple play: buy the assets these companies are speculating on – primarily Bitcoin. Forget the 20x, the 50x, the 100x dreams. Buy Bitcoin. It’s still going to $1 million even if the entire treasury narrative blows up in our faces.”
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