BlackRock’s iShares Preferred and Income Securities ETF (PFF) has significantly increased its holdings in Strive Inc.’s Variable Rate Series A Perpetual Preferred Stock (SATA), more than doubling its stake since June. This 133% surge has brought BlackRock’s position to 236,159 SATA shares, signaling a notable endorsement from the $10 trillion asset manager for what is essentially a Bitcoin accumulation vehicle structured as preferred equity.
Strive, co-founded by Vivek Ramaswamy, has established a unique model: it issues preferred stock offering investors an approximate 13% annualized variable dividend, with the proceeds then used to purchase Bitcoin. The company operates without debt or convertible notes, relying solely on equity to fund its direct Bitcoin acquisitions.
The Nasdaq-listed preferred stock is designed to trade within a narrow range of $99 to $101, centered around its $100 par value. This structure aims to mimic the behavior of a high-yield bond rather than a volatile growth stock, with dividends disbursed daily on business days.
The instrument debuted through an oversubscribed initial public offering in November 2025, raising $160 million at $80 per share. SATA carries no maturity date, relieving Strive of any obligation to redeem the shares. For U.S. tax purposes, the dividends are classified as a return of capital, a feature that can allow holders to defer taxable income. By mid-September 2026, SATA’s outstanding notional value had surpassed $1 billion, with approximately 10.4 million shares in circulation.
Bitcoin Acquisition Strategy
Every dollar raised through SATA issuances is dedicated to purchasing Bitcoin. During the week of September 8-11, Strive acquired 469 BTC at an average price of roughly $77,954 per coin, totaling approximately $36.6 million. This acquisition was funded entirely by proceeds from SATA.
Strive’s total Bitcoin holdings now exceed 25,000 BTC. The company reports a Bitcoin Net Asset Value (NAV) amplification ratio of 53.5%, a metric that quantifies how much its Bitcoin holdings per share surpass what would be expected from raw equity contributions alone.
Index Inclusion and Compliance
BlackRock’s investment in SATA is not driven by individual portfolio manager sentiment towards Bitcoin. PFF is a rules-based index ETF that tracks the ICE Exchange-Listed Preferred & Hybrid Securities Index. SATA’s inclusion in this index, and the subsequent increase in BlackRock’s position, indicates that the security meets the index’s criteria for market capitalization, liquidity, and credit characteristics.
Fidelity is also listed among SATA’s institutional holders. The presence of both BlackRock and Fidelity on the company’s capitalization table suggests that SATA has evolved beyond a niche crypto-finance experiment and now meets the compliance standards of major asset managers.
Potential Risks
A notable risk factor to monitor is the duration mismatch inherent in SATA’s structure. The preferred stock has no maturity date and offers a variable dividend rate, meaning Strive is not bound by fixed financing costs. However, its underlying asset, Bitcoin, is subject to significant price volatility, capable of dropping 30% within a single quarter. Should Bitcoin enter a prolonged downturn, the NAV amplification ratio could work in reverse, presenting a considerable challenge in maintaining a 13% dividend on a diminishing asset base.
