Why STRC tends to be lower‑vol than the S&P
STRC is designed to trade around a ~$100 par value, and Strategy explicitly says the dividend rate is adjusted monthly “to encourage trading around STRC’s $100 par value” and “help strip away price volatility.”
That’s a totally different beast from the S&P 500, which is 100% equity exposure and will naturally whip around with macro, earnings, risk-on/risk-off, etc.
Quick volatility receipts (with dates)
30‑day realized / historical volatility
- Strategy’s own dashboard snippet shows STRC 30‑day historical volatility ~7%.
- For SPY (S&P 500 ETF proxy), AlphaQuery shows 30‑day historical volatility = 0.1061 (~10.61%) for 2026‑01‑28.
30‑day options‑implied volatility
- Fintel shows STRC 30‑day implied vol = 8.11% (table includes 2026‑01‑28).
- Fintel shows SPY 30‑day implied vol = 13.45% (also 2026‑01‑28).
1‑year volatility snapshot (not perfect apples‑to‑apples because STRC is newer)
- Fintel “Volatility (1 yr)” shows STRC ~0.08 (8%).
- Fintel “Volatility (1 yr)” shows SPY ~0.19 (19%).
So your claim checks out: by multiple common measures (realized + implied), STRC has been running calmer than SPY/S&P.
The “don’t get it twisted” part (low vol ≠ low risk)
STRC can be smoother day-to-day, but it’s not a money-market fund. The core risk isn’t “market beta” like the S&P — it’s issuer / structure risk:
- The prospectus language says Strategy expects to fund cash dividends on STRC primarily through additional capital raising (like ATM offerings), and also highlights they may not have sufficient funds or may choose not to pay; if dividends aren’t paid, the value of STRC will likely decline.
So: lower volatility profile, yes. Lower risk in every way, not automatically.
If you want, tell me what you mean by “SP index” (SPX vs SPY vs something else) and what window you care about (30D / 90D / since issuance), and I’ll translate it into a clean apples-to-apples comparison (vol + max drawdown + worst week).