By Avery Klein
An activist appeal from Pantera Capital has emerged as a significant flashpoint for Satsuma Technology, the London-listed firm whose balance sheet includes a substantial bitcoin holding. According to a report cited by market sources, Pantera’s DAT Opportunity Fund, holder of a 6.7% stake in Satsuma, is among investors urging the company to sell its remaining bitcoin and distribute the cash to shareholders.
The fund is targeting Satsuma’s roughly $50 million crypto allocation, a position quantified in the report at 646 BTC. The investor push comes amid a severe collapse in Satsuma’s market valuation - its share price has tumbled about 99% from a peak of £14 reached last June.
Satsuma has confirmed that it has received requests from shareholders seeking capital returns, but the company did not identify any of the callers by name. Executive Chairman Ranald McGregor-Smith said the board is assessing its options while taking into account the interests of all shareholders.
Corporate funding history noted in the report highlights that the company raised £164 million in August 2025 via an oversubscribed convertible note backed by major crypto investors. That funding event and a strategy that left a meaningful portion of the treasury exposed to bitcoin have come under scrutiny as the price of bitcoin exhibited extreme volatility over the period in question.
The report states bitcoin moved above $126,000 at one point and then later fell by about half to roughly $60,000. That swing in the underlying asset undermined confidence in strategies that rely heavily on crypto holdings in the treasury and contributed to an assessment that Satsuma’s market capitalization has now slipped below the stated value of its bitcoin assets.
Investor unease has been compounded by recent leadership changes at Satsuma. The company experienced a board member departure in February and then the resignation of Chief Executive Officer Henry Elder in March. Those governance shifts have added to uncertainty as shareholders debate the merits of a wind-down and return of cash.
Context and next steps - Satsuma’s board has publicly acknowledged shareholder requests and is evaluating possible responses. No definitive decision has been announced, and the company has not confirmed the identities of those seeking capital distribution.
The situation remains fluid as executives and investors weigh the trade-offs of liquidating crypto assets versus retaining an exposure that, while sizable on paper, has created investor tension amid sharp digital-asset price swings.