Metaplanet, the tax-free Bitcoin for Japanese people

Author: Deep Tide TechFlow

It is said that the crypto altcoin season is in the stock market, with Japan's Metaplanet and America's MicroStrategy representing Bitcoin reserve strategies, both experiencing significant stock price increases.

As of June 25, 2025, Metaplanet's stock price has risen about 300% since the beginning of the year, with a market capitalization of around $6 billion (854.8 billion yen); meanwhile, MicroStrategy has only increased by 35% over the same period, with a market cap of around $105 billion.

Metaplanet is referred to as the "Japanese version of MicroStrategy," but public data shows that its Bitcoin reserves are only 11,111 coins, far less than MicroStrategy's 590,000 coins.

In comparison, Metaplanet has a lower market cap, fewer Bitcoin reserves, yet its stock price has risen more.

So, if we simply draw a conclusion — "the lower the market cap of a Bitcoin reserve company, the greater the potential for stock price increase," is this logic reasonable?

Yes, but also no.

Looking solely at the surface data, this logic certainly has no major issues and is equally applicable when comparing high market cap coins and low market cap coins in the crypto space.

However, Metaplanet's uniqueness lies in more financial data.

Metaplanet, Higher Valuation Premium

Currently, there are many comparative analyses of different crypto reserve companies on the market, but when looking at all the data together, the key indicator is valuation premium.

Last week, Primitive Ventures investment partner @YettaSing significantly pointed out the difference in market valuation premiums for the two companies through a table.

For example, the mNAV indicator (Multiple of Net Asset Value) in the table below shows that Metaplanet's mNAV is as high as 10.35, while MicroStrategy's is only 2.10, a difference of nearly 5 times.

What does this 5-fold difference mean?

In simple terms, mNAV is a measure of a company's valuation relative to the value of its Bitcoin assets. The higher the value, the more investors are willing to pay a premium for the company's exposure to Bitcoin.

Thus, it can also become a sentiment indicator, reflecting the strength of market confidence in Bitcoin investments and related companies. Quantitatively, this is roughly equivalent to Metaplanet receiving about $9.35 in premium from the stock market for every $1 of Bitcoin it holds, while MicroStrategy receives only $1.10.

In other words, participants in the Japanese stock market are more willing to buy Metaplanet stock than those in the U.S. stock market are to buy MicroStrategy.

We will not analyze the other data in the table further; just from this indicator, it can be seen that Metaplanet stands with a small-scale Bitcoin reserve and high premium, while MicroStrategy relies on massive assets to achieve stable valuation.

However, under the tens of times difference in Bitcoin reserves, why does Metaplanet achieve a higher premium? Is it simply because Metaplanet is a smaller company?

Buying Metaplanet Equals Buying Tax-Free BTC

One difference from the crypto space is that a country's stock market is more easily influenced by its economic environment and policies. The Japanese economy provides a unique soil for Metaplanet's high premium.

In Japan, profits from cryptocurrency trading are classified as Miscellaneous Income, subject to a progressive tax rate of up to 55% (including local taxes). This tax rate applies to individual investors who directly hold and sell cryptocurrencies, whether through exchanges or peer-to-peer transactions.

In contrast, the capital gains tax on stock investments is only 20% (including local taxes).

Additionally, Japan has a favorable NISA plan (Nippon Individual Savings Account), which aims to encourage personal savings and investment through a tax-exempt account system.

According to the NISA plan, individual investors can invest up to 3.6 million yen (about $25,000) per year, with capital gains and dividend income from this investment completely tax-free. Starting in 2024, the investment limit for the NISA plan will further increase to 6 million yen, covering a broader range.

In other words, investing in Metaplanet stock through the NISA plan allows for completely tax-free returns within a certain range. This significant tax burden difference makes the cost of directly holding Bitcoin particularly high in the Japanese market.

Metaplanet's "Bitcoin reserve" strategy provides investors with a tax-optimized solution. By purchasing Metaplanet stock, investors can not only gain indirect exposure to Bitcoin but also enjoy lower tax costs.

This tax advantage directly drives market demand for Metaplanet stock and is an important source of its valuation premium being 5 times that of MicroStrategy.

Moreover, the macroeconomic situation in Japan also supports Metaplanet's valuation premium.

Japan's debt-to-GDP ratio is as high as 235%, and the yield on 30-year government bonds has risen to 3.20%, indicating structural pressure in the bond market. In such a macro environment, investors' concerns about yen depreciation and inflation have intensified.

Metaplanet's Bitcoin reserves are viewed as a hedging tool, capable of hedging against yen depreciation risk and providing value preservation in a domestic inflation environment. This macro hedging demand further increases its market premium.

Additionally, the structure of Japan's capital market is primarily composed of retail investors, while the U.S. market is more dominated by institutional investors. Retail investors are more easily influenced by policies and market sentiment, which may lead to a higher premium for Metaplanet.

In contrast, institutional investors in the U.S. market focus more on fundamentals and asset size, which explains why MicroStrategy attracts attention with its "massive Bitcoin reserves," while Metaplanet stands out with its "high premium and small scale."

When Environment Becomes a New Variable

Therefore, Metaplanet's high valuation premium is not coincidental but a product of Japan's unique policy environment. From tax policies to the NISA plan, and the structural characteristics of the capital market, these factors collectively shape the high premium of its stock.

Looking only at the number of Bitcoin reserves and the company's market cap cannot reveal these insights; the stock market may place more emphasis on local customs and environment, which are key.

Policy-driven premiums open new opportunities for crypto investments.

As the altcoin season in the stock market has become a consensus, it is not only about considering Bitcoin reserve amounts or market cap; policy dividends, investor structure, and macroeconomic pressures jointly determine the valuation of "coin stocks."

Moreover, more small and medium-sized crypto reserve companies are rapidly emerging, replicating Metaplanet's high premium model, but the reasons for the premiums vary.

To some extent, this presents investors with more and more complex factors to consider compared to trading altcoins in the crypto space.

The rise of coin stocks not only expands the geographical landscape of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrency investments but may also reshape global capital flows, posing greater challenges to the energy and understanding of crypto investors.