The Tokyo-based Bitcoin treasury firm keeps shrinking its share count while working to bring its Bitcoin-backed debt back under its own target
Metaplanet has repurchased 22.46 million of its own shares for $37.8 million. The stated goal is to raise the amount of Bitcoin backing each remaining share.
How the buyback machine works
The latest purchase sits inside a larger repurchase program approved on October 13, 2026. That authorization lets Metaplanet buy back up to ¥60 billion (approximately $380 million) worth of stock, or up to 200 million shares.
The window runs through October 2027.
The program opened with a large block trade on October 14. Metaplanet bought 73.98 million shares at ¥261 each, a deal totaling around ¥19.31 billion.
After that opening move, the firm shifted to a mix of block trades and open-market purchases. By November 2, 2026, Metaplanet reported it had acquired 96.45 million shares in October, at a total cost of ¥25.27 billion.
One visible example: following the buyback, Capital Research and Management raised its voting stake to 11.11%, a move influenced by the reduced voting base.
Where the money is coming from
The company priced ¥52 billion in zero-coupon Euro-yen convertible bonds that mature on October 29, 2031.
Zero-coupon means the bonds pay no regular interest. Convertible means holders can swap them for stock at a set price, here ¥339 per share.
That conversion price reflects a 29.89% premium to the stock’s closing price on the day of approval.
Metaplanet has earmarked the bond proceeds for two jobs. One is partially repaying Bitcoin-collateralized loans. The other is financing the buybacks.
The balance sheet behind the strategy
As of September 30, 2026, Metaplanet held 44,000 BTC. The collective cost basis was approximately $4.33 billion, or an average of approximately $98,454 per coin.
Leverage is the part worth watching. Bitcoin-collateralized borrowings represented about 17.7% of the company’s Bitcoin NAV, well above its internal guideline of 10%.
Running at nearly double its own comfort level helps explain why part of the bond money is headed toward loan repayment.
What this means for shareholders and the treasury playbook
The convertible bonds add a second layer. If the stock rallies past ¥339, bondholders may convert and new shares will enter circulation, partly offsetting the shrinkage from buybacks.
If the stock stays below that level, Metaplanet will eventually owe the principal back in 2031.
For investors, three numbers deserve attention going forward. The first is the share count, which shows how aggressively the company keeps using its remaining buyback capacity before October 2027. The second is the debt-to-NAV ratio. A move from 17.7% back toward the 10% target would signal the deleveraging plan is working. The third is ownership concentration. As the voting base shrinks, holders like Capital Research and Management gain relative weight, which could shape governance decisions down the line.
