Michael Saylor’s rise to prominence amongst bitcoin (BTC) buyers is drawing appreciable criticism. One significantly disparaging analogy claims that his BTC-buying techniques at MicroStrategy are just like Do Kwon’s personal from 2022.

To grasp this obvious parallel, it’s value revisiting Kwon’s story and the months earlier than his prison prosecution.

To be clear, no authorities company has accused Saylor of any crime and there’s no indication that he — not like Kwon — is misappropriating bitcoin. If a critic makes this comparability in good religion, the main target is squarely on Kwon’s targets of buying and financializing BTC by way of an acquisition technique to rival Satoshi Nakamoto’s holdings.

Just like MicroStrategy’s objective of limitless BTC acquisition, Kwon’s Luna Basis Guard aimed to accumulate multiple million cash.

In 2022, nevertheless, the plan failed spectacularly.

Do Kwon needed to purchase a million bitcoin

When Kwon and his stablecoin large Terra (UST) have been at their zenith in April 2022, BTC was pumping. UST was value over $40 billion plus one other $17 billion in his governance token LUNA and since UST’s launch in 2019, BTC had rallied 400%.

In 2022, Kwon claimed that he would lead the Luna Basis Guard to accumulate 1 million BTC to help a secure peg for UST — a stash to rival Bitcoin’s creator Satoshi Nakamoto.

Not like UST, which was a $1 stablecoin, LUNA fluctuated in price and was integral to Kwon’s empire. It not solely supplied collateral for UST redemptions but in addition supplied voting privileges inside Kwon’s ostensibly decentralized ecosystem.

When Kwon launched LUNA in 2019, the coin was value lower than $10 and BTC was value lower than $10,000. Nearing his closing months of prominence, by December 2021, LUNA was value $100 and BTC had rallied to $50,000.

Though the price of BTC goes up for a lot of causes, its correlation with Kwon’s ascension was extraordinary.

Learn extra: CHART: Do Kwon’s extradition has seen a complete of 23 developments

In November 2021, merchants grew more and more bullish on Kwon’s empire and his skill to purchase BTC provide off the market. That month, BTC hit what was then an all-time excessive of $69,000.

Close to the top of Kwon’s empire, his Luna Basis Guard proclaimed that it had raised $1 billion to purchase BTC and supposed to lift one other $10 billion to purchase extra. 

In the end, that $10 billion increase by no means occurred. Three months later, Terra and LUNA crashed 99.9% and by no means recovered, leaving Kwon to face prison costs overseas and quite a few US civil lawsuits associated to his alleged fraud.

Michael Saylor additionally needs to purchase a million bitcoin

That historical past — a charismatic chief of a BTC-acquiring entity resulting in market exuberance — is inevitably drawing comparisons to MicroStrategy and its billionaire CEO.

Each males forecasted a supposedly transformative enterprise mannequin that will unlock a brand new suite of BTC-backed services.

In Kwon’s case, he claimed that property like BTC would permit his Luna Basis Guard to defend the $1 peg of his stablecoin and related suite of decentralized finance choices. 

Saylor, alternatively, is promoting future choices like bonds, choices, decentralized identification, or conventional banking providers like loans, all backed by his trove of BTC.

“The endgame is to be the leading Bitcoin bank, or merchant bank, or you could call it a Bitcoin finance company… MicroStrategy is the only bitcoin investment bank and will, in the future, be the most well-capitalized bitcoin investment bank ever.”

-Michael Saylor

Followers of Saylor assume that he can purchase $100 billion value of BTC, challenge BTC-backed securities, or disrupt the world’s $100 trillion bond market.

Certainly, one MicroStrategy follower posted an exaggerated projection that MicroStrategy may grow to be the primary $50 trillion firm. Others appeared satisfied that the agency’s shares may commerce to 10X its BTC holdings.

As of publication time, MicroStrategy owns over $35 billion value of BTC and is buying and selling at a 2.2 a number of on these holdings. Its frequent inventory has rallied 459% year-to-date.

Learn extra: MicroStrategy bulls assume Michael Saylor can pump it to 10X its BTC

Different comparisons

Whereas Saylor might be seen reveling in his ongoing success, Kwon’s historic posts linger hauntingly. His final posts are useless defenses of the Luna Guard Basis and his work to revive UST’s worth, together with discuss of half-baked makes an attempt to relaunch Terra as Terra2.

Though there are only a few significant comparisons between Kwon and Saylor, each males capitalized on their bullish forecasts for BTC. To make certain, they issued extraordinary guarantees to cheering buyers on social media who stuffed their baggage with digital cash. 

Though MicroStrategy is nothing just like the Luna Basis Guard, critics assume the 2 entities’ targets of buying one million BTC are equally foolish. As of publication time, MicroStrategy owns 386,700, and Luna Basis Guard owns zero.

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