Publicly-listed asset management firm Samara Asset Group is working to increase its Bitcoin holdings with proceeds from a 30 million euro ($32.8 million) bond.
Announcing the news on Oct. 14, Samara said investment bank Pareto Securities would be the sole manager in arranging a series of fixed investor meetings on a potential multi-million euro bond to expand its investment portfolio.
Source: Patrick Lowry
“An up to 30 million euro senior secured Nordic bond may follow subject to, inter alia, market conditions,” the firm said. The bond’s proceeds would be used for “additional limited partnership stakes” and investments in Bitcoin (BTC), which the firm uses as a “primary treasury reserve asset.”
According to Samara CEO Patrick Lowry, the asset manager has been hodling Bitcoin “for years” and is now increasing its Bitcoin treasury and investing in “disruptive tech through top managers and builders.”
“Not sure it’s possible, but it’d be a dream to stack as much as Michael Saylor,” Lowry said. As of September, Saylor’s MicroStrategy held 244,800 BTC.
Samara wants to hold 1,000 BTC by year’s end, says CEO
According to Lowry, Samara currently has exposure to “around 421 BTC” and is looking to significantly increase its holdings in 2024.
“I’d like to cross 1,000 BTC by year’s end,” Lowry told Cointelegraph. He noted that the size of Samara’s Bitcoin investment from the bond would depend on the amount raised:
“Depends on how much we raise. Any assets that we raise that don’t deploy to the funds will be held in Bitcoin as a part of our core treasury management strategy.”
Lowry said Samara invests not only in Bitcoin but also funds and managers on its mission to “advance humanity through technology.”
“With Bitcoin as our primary treasury reserve asset, we also enhance our liquidity position with bond proceeds,” he said.
Bitcoin bull Mike Novogratz co-founded Samara AG in 2018
Formerly known as Cryptology Asset Group, Samara was co-founded by Bitcoin bull Mike Novogratz, Apeiron Investment Group and Christian Angermayer’s family office in 2018. Based in Malta, Samara is listed on the German electronic stock exchange Xetra.
According to Lowry, Samara’s net asset value as of June was 189 million euros, or $206 million. The company’s portfolio includes the mining firm Northern Data, Deutsche Digital Assets, Nextmarkets and others.
Related: Japan’s Metaplanet makes $7M Bitcoin buy, bringing holdings to $40.5M
Samara’s move to increase its Bitcoin position comes as Novogratz’s crypto investment firm Galaxy Digital also expands its BTC holdings.
According to data from the blockchain data firm Arkham Intelligence, Galaxy has purchased almost 500 BTC since Oct. 7. At the time of writing, the amount is worth $32.4 million, according to data from CoinGecko.
Galaxy Digital’s Bitcoin purchases from Binance. Source: Arkham