[K33: Strategy's Preferred Stock Financing for Bitcoin Purchases Comes at a High Cost, Annualized Dividend Payments Reach $725 Million] According to The Block, K33 Research Director Vetle Lunde pointed out that Strategy's model of purchasing Bitcoin through preferred stock financing (particularly STRC) helped increase holdings by nearly 100,000 BTC in the first half of the year but significantly raised capital costs, potentially outweighing the benefits. K33's scenario simulations show that if STRC financing had not been used for Bitcoin purchases in the first half of the year, Strategy's Bitcoin holdings as of Monday would have been 843,303 BTC, compared to the actual holdings of 848,250 BTC—an increase of only 4,947 BTC. Meanwhile, STRC and other preferred stocks have resulted in approximately $725 million in annualized dividend payments.