Bitcoin hoarder Strategy buys $2.13 billion in bitcoin in eight days

Jan 20 (Reuters) - Billionaire Michael Saylor's bitcoin-focused firm Strategy said on Tuesday it ​bought about $2.13 billion worth of bitcoin ‌over the past eight days, stepping up purchases even ‌as its stock has been pressured by cryptocurrency volatility.

The company acquired roughly 22,305 bitcoin between the period of January 12 and January ⁠19, according to ‌a regulatory filing.

Saylor said in an X post on Tuesday that ‍Strategy holds 709,715 bitcoin as of January 19.

Shares of the company slid about 6.6% as bitcoinfell ​2.4%, underscoring the stock's sensitivity to moves ‌in the cryptocurrency.

Strategy said the purchases of bitcoin were funded with proceeds from its at-the-market offering program.

Earlier this month, Strategy reported an unrealized loss of $17.44 billion on its ⁠digital assets in the fourth ​quarter, reflecting a drop ​in the value of its bitcoin holdings in the quarter, a paper ‍hit that ⁠has weighed on investor sentiment alongside sharp crypto-market swings.

Strategy, which started out as software ⁠company MicroStrategy, began buying and holding bitcoin in ‌2020.

(Reporting by Prakhar Srivastava in Bengaluru; ‌Editing by Tasim Zahid)