MicroStrategy’s founder Michael Saylor has explicitly proposed treating Bitcoin as collateral for credit and even assigning it credit‐style metrics. In June 2025 Saylor offered to share MicroStrategy’s own “BTC Credit model” with U.S. regulators to help underwrite Bitcoin‐backed mortgages . The model replaces normal debt ratios with Bitcoin-backed ones: for example, it computes a “BTC Rating” equal to how many times the company’s BTC reserves cover its liabilities . A higher BTC Rating means more over‑collateralization. From this it derives “BTC Risk” (the probability that the BTC Rating falls below 1× given Bitcoin’s volatility) and a “BTC Credit Spread” (roughly –ln(1−BTC Risk)/Duration) . Saylor says these stats (BTC Rating, BTC Risk, BTC Credit) replace traditional metrics; for instance he tweeted that their model “takes into account Loan Duration, Collateral Coverage, BTC Price, BTC Volatility, and BTC ARR outlook” to generate “statistical BTC Risk and BTC Credit spreads” .
In Saylor’s scheme, every debt instrument is evaluated by Bitcoin backing. As CryptoBriefing explains, “instead of relying on traditional financial ratios, the model evaluates how many times Strategy’s BTC reserves cover its liabilities (BTC Rating), the associated credit risk based on volatility (BTC Risk), and a theoretical credit spread (BTC Credit)” . Artemis Analytics similarly describes the formula: BTC Rating = BTC NAV ÷ liability notional, so that a rating above 1× means full collateralization . They then compute BTC Credit Spread = –ln(1–BTC Risk)/duration and deem any spread under 100 bps as “investment grade” . (In their example, MicroStrategy’s STRF preferred shares had a BTC Rating ≈5.8× and implied credit spread <100 bps .) In other words, Strategy treats well‑backed BTC debt as safe as a low‑spread corporate bond, even if conventional markets might not yet price it that way.
Saylor’s Public Comments on BTC Credit
Saylor has repeatedly discussed these ideas in speeches, interviews and online. At the 2025 Bitcoin 2025 conference in Prague, he listed “BTC Credit Models & Metrics (BTC Rating, BTC Risk, BTC Credit)” as a key topic . He also noted that issuing “BTC-backed credit instruments” could be “the long-term durable business” of the future . In other contexts he has framed Bitcoin treasury companies (like MicroStrategy) as offering fixed-income yields in BTC rather than fiat: for example, he tweeted upon launching MicroStrategy’s STRF preferred stock, “STRF (‘Strife’) creates USD yield for $STRF investors — and BTC yield for $MSTR investors” (i.e. holders of STRF get dollar dividends, while MicroStrategy’s common shares earn Bitcoin) . He similarly promotes new corporate STRK/STRF credits as a way to convert low-cost dollar debt into perpetual Bitcoin returns. (These products themselves embed Saylor’s metrics – as one AI summary notes, “credit instruments STRK and STRF… provide metrics for BTC yield, creditworthiness, and risk assessment” .)
On earnings calls, Saylor has argued that MicroStrategy’s BTC reserves make its debt effectively “investment grade.” He pointed out that Strategy’s debt is so over‑collateralized by Bitcoin that it should be considered investment‑grade, despite what public markets price . In a Q1 2025 call he explicitly introduced the term “BTC Rating” (analogous to a credit multiple): it is the total dollar value of Bitcoin owned divided by total debt . Using volatility models, he showed the probability this rating would ever fall below 1× (i.e. become under‑collateralized) is extremely low. He even said he was on a mission to “educate” credit‐rating agencies about this true risk profile . Likewise, the Artemis write‑up notes that Strategy’s framework is intended to “benchmark BTC-backed liabilities against traditional credit” and push for future rating‑agency recognition .
Comparison to Traditional Credit and Fiat
Saylor sharply contrasts Bitcoin’s fixed supply/collateral profile with today’s weak fiat credit market. In interviews he recalls how, under an older fiat regime, a responsible treasurer could park capital in AAA bonds yielding 4–6% real return . By contrast, he says the fiat credit machine has “broken down”: now “corporate bonds, sovereign debt, and junk bonds are no longer stores of value” and they yield effectively zero . (As he notes, U.S. and EU 30‑year yields are only a few tenths of a percent .) In that context, he repeatedly stresses Bitcoin’s role as a safer store-of-value than any currency: in sum he has quipped that “BTC Rating is better than a Credit Rating,” implying that Bitcoin‑backed collateral merits a higher standing than traditional credit scores. In effect, Saylor’s models treat Bitcoin reserves like hyper‑collateral: if an issuer holds vastly more BTC than it owes, its bonds can yield low spreads much as an investment‑grade bond would.
Summary: Overall, Saylor views Bitcoin not just as an asset, but as the underpinning for a new class of credit products. He has introduced a formal Bitcoin credit framework – embodied in terms like BTC Rating, BTC Risk, and BTC Credit – that measures how solidly crypto reserves can back debt . He argues that with sufficient BTC collateral, even highly leveraged debt can trade like safe, investment‑grade paper . This perspective comes with frequent contrasts to fiat: Saylor notes that in the current era there are essentially no reliable yields on traditional bonds, making Bitcoin’s predictable scarcity and collateral value all the more important . In his view, then, Bitcoin’s “creditworthiness” far exceeds that of any government or corporate currency – a thesis he supports through these BTC‑centric metrics and public statements.
Sources: Saylor’s own tweets and speeches (cited above) and media reports of his BTC credit model and conferences . These include CryptoBriefing’s report on Saylor’s tweet, TradingView/U.Today coverage of his Prague talk, earnings‑call analysis by 76Research, and the Artemis analytics report on Strategy’s “BTC Credit Rating” framework. All quotes are from those sourced transcripts.