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GameStop’s love affair with Bitcoin may be coming to an end.
On Friday, CEO Ryan Cohen said the company is pivoting the meme-stock pioneer toward a “transformative” acquisition, suggesting the company’s roughly $500 million Bitcoin treasury may no longer be a permanent fixture on the balance sheet.
In a CNBC interview, Cohen declined to say whether GameStop plans to cash out its Bitcoin. Still, when asked how the company would fund future deals, Cohen described GameStop’s acquisition ambitions as “way more compelling than Bitcoin.”
“It’s transformational. Not just for GameStop, but ultimately, within the capital markets,” Cohen told CNBC. “This is something that really has never been done before within the history of the capital markets.”
“If it works, it’s genius. If it doesn’t work, it will be totally foolish,” he added.
Following the announcement, GameStop shares were up about 8.25% on the day, trading around $25.85 after rising $1.97 from $23.88.
The shift in GameStop’s sentiment on Bitcoin follows on-chain data from CryptoQuant indicating that the games retailer had recently transferred its entire 4,710 BTC holdings to Coinbase Prime in January.
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While such moves do not necessarily mean a sale, GameStop’s move led to speculation on X that the company is looking to liquidate its position as the value of its treasury currently hovers around $362.4 million. For now, GameStop’s Bitcoin holdings have not been sold.
In March, GameStop updated its investment policy to allow Bitcoin as a treasury reserve asset, joining a growing number of publicly traded companies that have treated the digital currency as a balance-sheet hedge.
According to Greg Magadini, director of derivatives at Amberdata, Bitcoin’s recent pullback has brought prices back near where many large institutional buyers entered the market in 2025.
“This means that there's an incentive for large corporations to protect themselves before others capitulate,” Magadini told Decrypt. “If GME finds a better use of capital, reallocating balance sheet away from Bitcoin into an alternative use (such as an acquisition) could make sense.”
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According to Magadini, the bearish case for Bitcoin centers on the risk that the wave of corporate and institutional buying seen in late 2024 and 2025 could reverse, with former buyers turning into net sellers, flipping inflows into outflows, and potentially triggering a downward price spiral as falling prices force additional selling.
“Although this bearish scenario could happen, the market is likely aware of some of these dynamics, and this risk may already be priced into Bitcoin,” he said, adding that GME selling its Bitcoin doesn’t necessarily mean other large holders will as well.
“Companies like MSTR have financed their Bitcoin purchases with longer-term debt that isn't subject to margin liquidation like many exchange traders are accustomed to,” he said. “This means lower prices don't necessarily turn MSTR into a seller, even if GME selling Bitcoin brings prices down momentarily.”
GameStop did not immediately respond to Decrypt's request for comment.
