Peter Schiff Accuses MicroStrategy of Manipulating Bitcoin Price with Massive Purchases

• MicroStrategy bought 423.650 BTC in 2024, pushing prices higher.
• Peter Schiff accuses Saylor of market manipulation.
• Impact of purchases questions cryptocurrency principles.

Peter Schiff, a well-known gold bull and Bitcoin critic, has made serious accusations against Michael Saylor and his company MicroStrategy, claiming that their actions are manipulating the price of Bitcoin. Schiff pointed out that the company's buying patterns, which include massive and predictable acquisitions, have a direct impact on market movements.

# Bitcoin is at a new all-time high again tonight. Most likely, we will find out tomorrow that @Saylor was the buyer. That seems to be the trend, as it's happened the last five Mondays in a row.

- Peter Schiff (@PeterSchiff) December 16, 2024

Bitcoin recently hit a new all-time high of $106.493, and Schiff noted that MicroStrategy’s buying moves often coincide with significant increases in the cryptocurrency’s price. In a social media post, he stated: “We’ll probably find out tomorrow that Saylor was the buyer. This seems to be the pattern—it’s happened the last five Mondays in a row.”

These criticisms have been heightened by the numbers released by MicroStrategy. In 2024, the company acquired more than 423.650 BTC, spending billions of dollars. Last month, the company announced the purchase of 21.550 BTC for $2,1 billion, consolidating a pattern of acquisitions on Mondays that has caught the market's attention.

The relationship between purchases and appreciation
Since July, MicroStrategy has demonstrated an insatiable appetite for Bitcoin. In a single transaction, it acquired 12.222 BTC for $805,2 million, with an average price of $65.882 per coin. In December, new purchases increased the company’s total to 423.650 BTC, representing an investment of over $43,6 billion.

Frequent purchases and regular announcements appear to directly influence market perception, driving up Bitcoin’s price. Schiff accuses these practices of being deliberate in order to inflate the cryptocurrency’s value and generate hype in the market, taking advantage of the industry’s volatility and limited regulation.

MicroStrategy’s impact on the market raises questions about the role of large institutions in the cryptocurrency ecosystem. While some argue that institutional participation strengthens Bitcoin as a financial asset, critics like Schiff argue that such behavior undermines the decentralized principles that underpin crypto.

At the time of publication, the price of Bitcoin was quoted at US$106.785, up 3.7% in the last 24 hours.

Michael Saylor, on the other hand, continues to defend acquisitions as part of MicroStrategy's long-term strategy, highlighting that cryptocurrencies are an essential asset for preserving value and protecting against inflation.