Research Methodology

Three-part inclusion test

A company qualifies only when all three conditions are satisfied:

1. Ownership: The Bitcoin is company-owned or clearly attributable to the reporting company.
2. Verification: The amount is supported by a regulatory filing, audited report, official investor announcement, or another traceable primary source.
3. Strategic intent: Management demonstrates an intention to retain, acquire, or strategically manage Bitcoin as a treasury or capital-allocation asset.

Treasury classifications

• Bitcoin Treasury Company: Bitcoin accumulation and treasury management are central to the corporate strategy.
• Operating Company with BTC Treasury: A conventional operating business also maintains a strategic Bitcoin reserve.
• Bitcoin Miner with Strategic Holdings: A mining company deliberately retains mined or purchased Bitcoin as a strategic balance-sheet asset.
• Digital Asset Company with Corporate BTC: A digital-asset business holds clearly identified company-owned Bitcoin, excluding customer assets.
• Incidental Holder: Bitcoin appears on the balance sheet without sufficient evidence of a strategic treasury policy. These records are normally excluded or placed under review.

Qualification tiers

• Core Directory: At least 100 BTC confirmed.
• Emerging Treasury Company: At least 10 BTC but fewer than 100 BTC.
• Watchlist / Announced Strategy: A public company has announced a strategy but has not yet confirmed 10 BTC.

Balance states and totals

Last verified attributable BTC is paired with its balance date. Verified disclosure means supported at that date, not a real-time balance. Historical-only balances remain visible but are not included in current totals. Unresolved balances are unknown, not zero. A historical zero does not establish a current treasury exit.

Included in totals requires Included directory status, Verified research status, a verified disclosure balance and a qualifying Core or Emerging tier. Excluded and Watchlist records remain accessible but are not counted. Pending qualification means eligibility is unresolved; it does not mean Watchlist. Excluded records show Not applicable for their tier.

Separately reported or newer headline BTC has its own date, source and explanation. It is never substituted for attributable BTC in totals, ranking or valuation. Historical and unresolved balances have no current valuation.

Ownership and component reporting

The displayed attributable balance is separate from its inclusion in totals. Profiles separately identify owned pledged, restricted, or subsidiary-owned Bitcoin when disclosed. A blank component means the amount was not separately disclosed; it does not mean zero.

Owned pledged BTC can qualify. Title-transferred loans, collateral receivables, contractual redelivery or repurchase claims, wrapped BTC, and customer/product/rewards backing do not become owned-BTC components. Components may overlap and must not be summed automatically. Subsidiary allocation follows the disclosed ownership scope without double counting.

Excluded from directory totals

• Customer or custodial Bitcoin
• ETF, trust, or fund assets held for investors
• Bitcoin accepted as payment and immediately converted
• Unverified social-media claims or unsupported estimates
• Duplicate parent-and-subsidiary holdings
• Announced purchases that have not been completed or confirmed

Special treatment of miners

A miner is included only when available evidence shows that Bitcoin is being deliberately retained or strategically managed. Unsold production held briefly in the normal course of operations is not automatically treated as a treasury strategy.

Accepted sources

• Regulatory filings and exchange disclosures
• Audited annual and quarterly reports
• Official investor-relations announcements
• Company treasury or production reports

Data status labels

Verified: confirmed through a primary source. Company-reported: reported but not independently reconciled. Estimated: calculated from available figures. Research pending: awaiting verification. Needs Review: unresolved evidence or methodology. Verification does not itself establish directory inclusion.

Limitations

Holdings, restrictions, corporate structures, and market values can change between reports. Component disclosures are not standardized across companies. Visitors should consult the linked original sources before making decisions.