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Strive and MARA both hold Bitcoin, but they are not the same kind of Bitcoin company. Strive describes itself as a treasury and structured-finance business; MARA combines Bitcoin mining with a broader digital-infrastructure strategy. Their latest reported figures also measure different things: Strive disclosed purchases through August 7, 2026, but no matching total Bitcoin balance in its located results release, while MARA reported 35,577 BTC at June 30, 2026, including Bitcoin that was loaned or pledged.
How do Strive and MARA differ?
| Comparison | Strive | MARA |
|---|---|---|
| Core business model | Treasury and structured finance, as the company describes its approach. | Bitcoin mining as the foundation of a wider digital-infrastructure platform, alongside Bitcoin asset management. |
| Latest located Bitcoin disclosure | Acquisition flows through August 7, 2026; the located second-quarter release does not state a total Bitcoin balance for that date. | 35,577 BTC reported at June 30, 2026. |
| How Bitcoin is accumulated | Reported purchases of 12,237 BTC in the first half of 2026, plus 303 BTC acquired from July 1 through August 7. | Bitcoin mined and purchased. For 2025, MARA reported mining 8,799 BTC and acquiring 4,267 BTC. |
| How Bitcoin may be used or monetized | Uses preferred equity and balance-sheet management to support its treasury approach; reported no short- or long-term debt outstanding as of August 7, 2026. | May sell mined and balance-sheet BTC, and reports lending BTC and pledging it as collateral. |
| Key qualification | Purchase flows are not a point-in-time holding total. | The June 30, 2026 balance includes 9,270 BTC that was loaned or pledged. |
The figures are company-reported and have different measurement dates and bases. They should not be read as a direct comparison of current, freely available Bitcoin. Strive’s August 10, 2026 results report acquisition activity through August 7. MARA’s June 30, 2026 Form 10-Q reports a dated balance.
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How much Bitcoin does Strive own compared with MARA?
Strive: reported purchases, not a matching total
In its second-quarter 2026 results, Strive reported acquiring 6,236 BTC in Q2 and 12,237 BTC during the first half of 2026. It also reported acquiring another 303 BTC between July 1 and August 7. Those are flows of Bitcoin purchased over specified periods, not a reported total treasury balance on August 7. Adding them to an older balance would not establish a current total without accounting for sales and other balance movements.
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MARA: a dated total with encumbered Bitcoin
MARA reported 35,577 BTC as of June 30, 2026. Its Q2 shareholder letter divides that balance into 26,307 unrestricted BTC, 4,742 loaned BTC, and 4,528 BTC pledged as collateral. The loaned and pledged categories total 9,270 BTC, matching the digital-asset-management figure in its quarterly filing. “Unrestricted” is therefore the more relevant figure if the question is how much of the reported balance was not identified as loaned or pledged; even that label should not be mistaken for a guarantee that all of it could be sold immediately without regard to operating or capital needs. See the Q2 2026 shareholder letter for the breakdown.
How does Strive fund its Bitcoin purchases?
Strive frames Bitcoin as a capital-allocation hurdle rate and describes itself as a structured-finance company. Its corporate profile says SATA, its variable-rate perpetual preferred stock, is intended to provide investor cash flows while allowing Strive to capture a spread between SATA’s financing cost and potential long-term Bitcoin returns. That is management’s stated rationale, not a guaranteed spread or return. The company’s investor-relations profile explains its framing.
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In its August 10, 2026 results, Strive said it had retired all short- and long-term debt and had no such debt outstanding as of August 7. That disclosure describes debt status on that date; it does not mean the company has no financing costs or other obligations, nor does it by itself establish how each Bitcoin purchase was funded.
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Yes, under the policy described in its filings. MARA’s FY2025 annual report says the company historically held the Bitcoin it mined, then shifted in 2025 to allowing sales of some mined BTC to fund operating expenses. In 2026 it also permitted sales of balance-sheet BTC, subject to market conditions and capital priorities. The same filing describes using Bitcoin through lending, structured trading arrangements, and collateralized financing.
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That flexibility marks a change from a simple “mine and hold” approach. Selling, lending, or pledging can help support operating costs or financing, but each has different implications: a sale reduces the Bitcoin balance, a loan places BTC with a borrower under an agreement, and pledged BTC supports an obligation. MARA’s FY2025 Form 10-K describes its strategy and policy change.
What do MARA’s 2025 Bitcoin figures show?
MARA’s FY2025 report says it mined 8,799 BTC and acquired 4,267 BTC at an average price of $111,034 during 2025. It reported 53,822 BTC at December 31, 2025. These are historical year-end figures, not a substitute for the later 35,577 BTC balance reported at June 30, 2026; comparing them as if they were simultaneous would obscure the change over time.
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What else distinguishes the companies’ strategies?
Strive: treasury growth and capital allocation
Strive presents its strategy around treasury accumulation and financing rather than mining as the operating foundation. Its approach therefore depends on capital allocation, financing terms, and balance-sheet decisions as well as Bitcoin purchases. Separately, on July 22, 2026, Strive announced a Bitcoin Stewardship Commitment with initial support for open-source Bitcoin development through Brink. That initiative concerns stewardship and is distinct from the company’s treasury and financing decisions. Details are in Strive’s announcement.
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MARA says Bitcoin mining remains the foundation of its broader digital-infrastructure strategy. Mining gives the company an operating route to accumulate Bitcoin, while its permission to sell, lend, or pledge holdings gives it additional ways to manage liquidity and capital. MARA’s stated infrastructure ambitions and Bitcoin activity should therefore be considered together rather than treating its BTC balance as the whole business.
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How to read the comparison
- Match dates before comparing balances. Strive’s cited figures cover acquisitions through August 7, 2026; MARA’s total is dated June 30, 2026.
- Separate flows from stocks. Bitcoin acquired during a period does not equal the total held at its end.
- Check availability, not just the headline total. MARA identified 9,270 BTC as loaned or pledged at June 30.
- Include the business model. Strive emphasizes treasury and structured finance; MARA pairs mining with infrastructure and Bitcoin asset management.
- Treat strategy language as company intent. Statements about potential financing spreads, returns, or future priorities are not assurances of results.
This comparison describes company-reported strategies and balances; it does not determine whether either company’s common stock or preferred securities suit a particular investor.
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