MSCI has opened a consultation that could remove Michael Saylor's Strategy and Japan's Metaplanet from its Global Investable Market Indexes. The screen targets companies that hold assets like Bitcoin instead of running an operating business, and a removal would force passive funds to sell mechanically. MSCI estimates the Strategy impact alone at $1.8 billion to $2.0 billion, with a final decision due in November.
MSCI has opened a consultation that could remove Michael Saylor's Strategy and Japan's Metaplanet from its Global Investable Market Indexes, a move that would force passive funds to sell between $1.8 billion and $2.0 billion of Strategy stock alone. The consultation asks whether non-operating companies belong in MSCI's widely tracked equity benchmarks.
Five tests, zero passes so far
MSCI's proposed methodology applies five financial screening criteria, and a company must pass at least two of them to stay in the index. Strategy, based on its FY2025 filings, reportedly fails all five, and Metaplanet faces the same predicament. Both companies generate minimal traditional operating revenue relative to the enormous Bitcoin positions they have accumulated through convertible debt offerings and equity issuance.
A wider net than the last round
This is not MSCI's first attempt at the issue. An earlier consultation targeted Digital Asset Treasury firms specifically and closed in December 2025; JPMorgan projected then that total passive outflows could reach as high as $8.8 billion if multiple index providers aligned with MSCI's approach. The current consultation instead frames the screen around "non-operating companies," a broader category that could apply to any company whose primary activity is holding a single asset rather than running a business.
Timeline to the index review
MSCI opened the consultation in August 2026. The feedback period runs through the end of September 2026. The final methodology is due for publication on October 16, 2026. The index review, where deletion decisions get made, is set for November 11, 2026.
Why the mechanics matter
Trillions of dollars in global assets track MSCI indexes, so a removal forces passive funds to sell rather than choose to. The estimated $1.8 billion to $2.0 billion outflow reflects MSCI's own impact alone. If FTSE Russell or S&P Dow Jones adopt similar screens, the cumulative selling pressure would compound significantly — which is what produced the earlier $8.8 billion JPMorgan estimate.
Source: Crypto Briefing
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