rewrite this title Michael Saylor downplays Strategy credit risk as bitcoin tumbles: ‘We’ll refinance the debt’

Strategy CEO Michael Saylor brushed off concerns about the company’s credit risk if bitcoin continues to tumble.

In fact, Saylor said he plans to keep accumulating the cryptocurrency for the company every quarter.

“If bitcoin falls 90% for the next four years, we’ll refinance the debt,” the executive said Tuesday on CNBC’s “Squawk Box.” “We’ll just roll it forward.”

Asked whether he believed banks would continue to lend to the digital asset treasury firm if bitcoin collapses, Saylor said, “Yeah, because the volatility of bitcoin is such that it’s always going to be a value.”

Bitcoin was last trading at $68,970.45, down 9% over the past five days. It has retreated as investors broadly reassess its utility, with the token tumbling 15% to $60,062.00 on Thursday — its lowest level in roughly 16 months. At its trough, the crypto was down more than 50% from its record.

Strategy has more than $8 billion in total debt on its balance sheet, in part due to its issuance of convertible notes used to buy bitcoin.  

The executive also dismissed suggestions that Strategy would sell any of its digital asset holdings: “I expect we’ll be buying bitcoin every quarter forever,” Saylor said.

Strategy holds 714,644 bitcoins worth about $49 billion as of writing time, per its website. That makes it the largest corporate owner of the digital asset.

Saylor noted his firm has two-and-a-half years worth of cash on its balance sheet to cover dividends.

Strategy shed about 2% on Tuesday as bitcoin broke below $70,000 again. The stock has tumbled more than 40% over the past three months.