CryptoQuant Flags Risk as Cboe Moves Toward Perpetual Futures

Crypto analytics firm CryptoQuant is urging MicroStrategy-linked holding company Strategy to slow down its Bitcoin accumulation, arguing that its dividend financing cushion has narrowed sharply. The warning arrives as investors increasingly scrutinize how Strategy’s cash flows, preferred-share obligations, and debt actions combine to fund new purchases.

Meanwhile, other crypto-industry developments underline how quickly market structure and traditional finance integration are moving—ranging from CBOE’s consideration of perpetual-style Bitcoin and Ether futures to new research efforts connecting stablecoins with cross-border FX settlement. Zcash mining company Fortitude is also preparing to reach public markets via a Nasdaq merger.

Key takeaways

• CryptoQuant says Strategy’s dividend coverage has fallen to about 14 months from roughly seven years, arguing the current pace of Bitcoin buying may be harder to sustain.
• Strategy’s dividend burden rose after large issuances of STRC preferred shares with an 11.5% yield, and CryptoQuant points to additional pressure from repurchasing 2029 senior notes.
• CBOE is reportedly exploring whether continuous Bitcoin and Ether futures could be converted into perpetual contracts—following broader regulatory momentum for perpetual futures.
• Chainlink is joining a banking working group to study stablecoin-based FX settlement between euro and won, using blockchain settlement concepts rather than launching a payment network.
• Fortitude Mining Holdings is pursuing a Nasdaq listing through an all-stock merger with HeartSciences, with the combined entity expected to trade under the Fortitude name.

CryptoQuant warns Strategy’s dividend coverage has tightened

In a thread posted earlier this week, CryptoQuant argued that Strategy’s aggressive Bitcoin buying has become increasingly difficult to sustain, urging the company to pause additional acquisitions and rebuild its cash reserves. The catalyst, according to CryptoQuant, is a steep deterioration in dividend coverage—down to roughly 14 months from about seven years.

CryptoQuant CEO Ki Young Ju said Strategy’s cash position has weakened as annual dividend obligations rose to approximately $1.2 billion following large issuances of STRC preferred shares carrying an 11.5% yield. CryptoQuant also notes that Strategy’s cash reserve rebounded to around $1.4 billion after recent MicroStrategy (MSTR) share sales, but that reserve remains down 38% year-to-date after the company repurchased $1.5 billion of its 2029 senior notes.

Beyond the cash trajectory, CryptoQuant highlighted a potential constraint in Strategy’s ability to fund itself through preferred-share issuance. It pointed out that STRC preferred shares recently traded as much as 17.5% below their $100 par value, which it said could limit the company’s capacity to raise fresh capital through additional preferred stock sales.

The core implication for investors is straightforward: even if Strategy is not facing an immediate liquidity crisis, the financing model supporting Bitcoin purchases is under a tighter margin. Dividend obligations tied to preferred equity can become a more immediate drag when reserves shrink and refinancing flexibility declines. Investors watching Strategy’s next purchases may therefore focus less on headline accumulation targets and more on whether cash buffers and dividend coverage stabilize.

CBOE weighs converting continuous futures into perpetual contracts

In a separate market-structure shift, the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) is reportedly considering a plan to convert its continuous Bitcoin and Ether futures into perpetual futures. The potential move was described in a Wall Street Journal report, and it would mark a notable evolution for a venue that already launched continuous contracts last December, with ten-year extensions.

Perpetual futures differ from traditional futures mainly because they do not have an expiration date. That structure allows traders to carry leveraged exposure indefinitely, which is one reason perpetual products have gained broad traction across derivatives venues over the years, including on crypto-native platforms.

The idea also fits with recent regulatory momentum in the United States. According to the reporting around the CFTC’s actions, the regulator approved crypto perpetual futures for Kalshi and outlined a framework that other registered exchanges could follow. If CBOE moves forward, it would be joining an expanding list of efforts to bring perpetual-style mechanics into more traditional exchange ecosystems.

For traders, the key variable is how perpetual contracts may change hedging and risk management compared with dated or continuous futures. For exchanges, it is a question of product demand, margin mechanics, and regulatory compatibility—especially as perpetual formats become more common in both centralized and decentralized derivatives markets.

Chainlink joins banks to test stablecoin FX settlement concepts

Chainlink has joined a cross-border banking initiative aimed at exploring whether regulated euro- and won-backed stablecoins can support real-time foreign exchange settlement. The project, known as Project Pangea, brings together European and South Korean institutions to evaluate blockchain-based settlement approaches, including atomic swap concepts.

Project Pangea is described as a working group rather than a launch of a live payment network. The participants include South Korean digital asset infrastructure company FairSquareLab, the Unified Korea Alliance (UniKA), Qivalis, and Chainlink. The collaboration is focused on wholesale financial market mechanics—where FX is one of the largest trading arenas globally—rather than on retail transfers.

The broader significance is that banks and market infrastructure groups are continuing to experiment with stablecoins and tokenized settlement rails to reduce friction in cross-border transactions. The initiative aligns with growing interest in how tokenized deposits and stablecoins could modernize settlement workflows, potentially lowering latency and improving composability across counterparties.

Still, Project Pangea is exploratory. What remains uncertain is whether the group’s findings translate into operational products, which jurisdictions and regulatory frameworks would govern any real-world deployments, and how atomic-swap settlement might be integrated into existing market infrastructure.

Zcash miner Fortitude targets Nasdaq via merger with HeartSciences

Fortitude Mining Holdings, a Zcash miner, is set to pursue a Nasdaq listing through an all-stock merger with medical technology company HeartSciences. The plan is designed to secure a Nasdaq presence without going through a traditional initial public offering, and HeartSciences shareholders are expected to retain a minority stake in the combined company.

After the transaction, the merged entity will operate under the Fortitude name and is expected to trade on Nasdaq under the ticker TUDE, pending regulatory approval. The merger announcement also appeared to move HeartSciences’ shares sharply higher, with reports noting gains as large as 91% on Tuesday.

The deal is particularly notable because it connects two businesses from different sectors—healthcare and crypto mining—under a single public-market wrapper. Prior to the merger, HeartSciences was reportedly unprofitable, posting a net loss of $8.77 million in fiscal 2025 despite continuing to advance its product roadmap.

For the crypto side, investors will likely look beyond the listing mechanics and ask how mining economics, funding plans, and market conditions will factor into the combined company’s strategy once it reaches public markets.

Next, market participants should watch whether Strategy’s dividend coverage stabilizes alongside any changes in Bitcoin purchase pacing, whether CBOE’s perpetual-futures consideration turns into a formal product filing, and how Project Pangea’s technical work progresses toward any regulated settlement trials.