What Happened?
After voting, the majority of Meta shareholders do not expect to include Bitcoin in the company’s asset allocation, emphasizing that the current financial management system is resilient and efficient enough.
The proposal’s initiator believes that under the continuous depreciation of fiat currency, assets may be affected, leading to value shrinkage and losses for shareholders, while Bitcoin has the opportunity to outpace inflation.
Meta’s choice does not represent a complete rejection of blockchain technology. According to reports, Meta is currently considering integrating stablecoins into its platform to support cross-border payments and other business functionalities.
Meta Shareholders Vote Against Bitcoin Inclusion in Asset Allocation
While an increasing number of companies are incorporating Bitcoin into their asset allocations, tech giant Meta has no plans to follow suit. According to regulatory documents submitted by Meta on May 28, shareholders overwhelmingly voted against a proposal to include Bitcoin in part of its asset allocation.
This proposal, initiated by Ethan Peck, the Bitcoin director at asset management firm Strive, received only about 3.92 million votes in support, accounting for just 0.08% of total voting power; in contrast, nearly 5 billion shares were cast against it, with an additional 8.9 million abstentions and 205 million votes classified as broker non-votes.
According to foreign media reports, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg holds 61% of the voting power, indicating that he likely also cast a vote against the proposal. The Meta board publicly opposed the proposal before the vote, emphasizing that the current financial management system is sufficiently resilient and efficient, negating the need for additional evaluations of cryptocurrency assets.
Most Tech Giants Have Yet to Follow Suit
Initiator Peck pointed out that Meta currently holds as much as $72 billion in cash and cash-equivalent assets, but with the continuous depreciation of fiat currency, nearly 30% of its assets are quietly shrinking, representing a significant loss for shareholders. He argued that Bitcoin, as a limited supply digital asset, has the potential to outpace inflation and enhance asset allocation efficiency.
Peck added in the proposal that BlackRock, the largest asset management company in the United States and Meta’s second-largest shareholder, had suggested that the company allocate 2% of its assets to Bitcoin.
According to reports, Peck made the suggestion in the capacity of his family’s shareholding, and he has also made similar proposals to Microsoft and Amazon in 2024. However, Microsoft shareholders voted against the proposal in December 2024, while Amazon is expected to hold a vote this year.
Nick Cowan, CEO of fintech company Valereum, analyzed that tech giants prefer to invest their funds in research and development or mergers and acquisitions rather than allocating to the more volatile Bitcoin.
Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas previously described: “If a company like Meta or Microsoft were to buy Bitcoin, the impact would likely far exceed that of dozens of small and medium-sized enterprises entering the market. It’s like when Tom Hanks was diagnosed with COVID, it truly made people realize the severity of the pandemic.”
However, the decision not to include Bitcoin in reserves does not mean that Meta completely rejects blockchain technology. According to foreign media reports, Meta has been discussing with several crypto infrastructure companies the possibility of integrating stablecoins into its platform to support cross-border payments and other business functionalities.
Source: Cointelegraph, BeInCrypto