Strategy’s May Bitcoin Buys and SpaceX Disclosure Explain Spike in Public Corporate Holdings

May’s increase in publicly disclosed corporate bitcoin holdings was driven mainly by two developments: Strategy Inc.’s confirmed purchase of 25,404 bitcoin during the month and SpaceX’s newly public disclosure that it held 18,712 bitcoin on its balance sheet as of March 31. Together, those filings help explain why May’s aggregate rose sharply — not only because companies bought more bitcoin, but also because an existing holding became visible through a public filing.

Strategy, the company formerly known as MicroStrategy, disclosed the purchases in two Form 8-K filings in May 2026. In a May 11 filing, the company said it acquired 535 bitcoin during May 4-10 for about $43.0 million, bringing its holdings to 818,869 bitcoin as of May 10. In a May 18 filing, it said it acquired another 24,869 bitcoin during May 11-17 for about $2.01 billion, at an average price of about $80,985 per bitcoin, bringing its holdings to 843,738 bitcoin as of May 17. The company said in its filings that “the bitcoin purchases were made using proceeds from the sale of shares under the ATM,” referring to its at-the-market stock sale program.

SpaceX’s contribution to the month’s increase was different. In an S-1 and prospectus filed May 20, with a more detailed EU prospectus published June 5, the company disclosed that “as of March 31, 2026 and December 31, 2025, the Company also held 18,712 units of Bitcoin …” That means SpaceX did not disclose a May bitcoin purchase. Instead, it revealed an existing position that had not previously been fully reflected in public tallies of corporate holdings.

Industry tracker BitcoinTreasuries said in a June 2 recap that public bitcoin treasuries “added or disclosed 51,000 BTC in May before holding reductions, or 43,500 BTC net after reductions.” The tracker specifically highlighted Strategy’s 25,404 bitcoin of purchases and SpaceX’s 18,712-bitcoin disclosure as the biggest contributors to the month’s increase in disclosed corporate holdings. Exact monthly totals can vary depending on tracker methodology, and the figure 43,557 bitcoin, which has circulated elsewhere, is not stated in the primary filings cited here and is not independently verified by those documents.

The distinction matters because monthly corporate bitcoin totals can swing on the actions of a small number of large holders — and because public filings can reveal positions that blockchain-based estimates do not capture. SpaceX’s prospectus said the company uses third-party custodians, offering one explanation for why a securities filing may show more than on-chain address tracking alone.

That makes May a useful example of how corporate bitcoin exposure becomes visible. One of the world’s most aggressive corporate buyers, Strategy, added substantially to an already enormous position. At the same time, SpaceX expanded the public picture simply by disclosing a holding it already had.

Strategy remains the largest publicly disclosed corporate bitcoin holder, with 843,738 bitcoin reported as of May 17. And SpaceX’s filing, while not evidence of a fresh May purchase, added a significant previously undisclosed balance-sheet position to the public record.