Prenetics Global Limited, the health sciences company linked to David Beckham, revealed that it will stop buying Bitcoin in 2026. This marks a clear setback from the corporate strategy of accumulating BTC as a reserve, which gained popularity earlier in the cycle.
The company confirmed that it ended its daily purchases of Bitcoin in December 2025 and will make no further acquisitions. Although Prenetics will retain the Bitcoin it already has, this strategic shift reflects a broader review that many public companies are undertaking after the drop in Bitcoin at the end of 2025.
The Bitcoin bear market causes companies to redefine their strategies
The sharp drop of Bitcoin in November and December of 2025 greatly affected companies that use part of their balance sheet to expose themselves to cryptocurrencies. This pressure was more visible in Strategy (MicroStrategy), whose shares have fallen much more than Bitcoin itself during the correction.
This difference showed a structural risk. Bitcoin strategies financed with equities can increase losses during bearish trends. This is due to leverage, dilution, and the change in investor sentiment.
As Bitcoin fell, MicroStrategy's stock price amplified the movement. MSTR has fallen more than 60% in the last six months. This reinforced concerns that treasury-led exposure turns operating companies into high beta crypto proxies.
For companies outside the crypto sector, that volatility implies reputational and governance risks. Boards must explain capital use to shareholders, who may prefer to allocate cash to more predictable uses and not to such a cyclical asset.
One way to face the risk
In that context, Prenetics' decision seems to be less a total abandonment of Bitcoin and more a way to limit risk on its balance sheet.
Prenetics maintains a close relationship with Beckham through IM8, its premium health and longevity brand founded alongside the former footballer.
The rapid growth of IM8's revenue has made the company now seek to expand its operations more than to engage in financial engineering.
By ceasing to make new purchases of Bitcoin, Prenetics reduces its exposure to changes in the crypto market and keeps its options open with the Bitcoins it already owns.
This measure shows a more general cooling of business enthusiasm for Bitcoin. As became clear with the tensions at the end of 2025, corporate treasuries based on Bitcoin can increase returns in bull markets, but they also introduce large declines in corrections.
