Dell Technologies Rejects Shareholder Proposal to Add Bitcoin to Its Treasury Strategy

The proposal, put forward earlier this year by the National Center for Public Policy Research (NCPPR), called on Dell's board to explore the possible advantages of holding Bitcoin

Dell Technologies has successfully fended off a shareholder proposal that suggested the company should consider adding Bitcoin (BTC) to its treasury strategy in the upcoming year.

The proposal, put forth earlier this year by the National Center for Public Policy Research (NCPPR), called on Dell’s board to report on the advantages and disadvantages of including Bitcoin in the company’s cash management.

The Washington-based think tank, which has made similar Bitcoin-related requests to major firms like Meta (META), Amazon (AMZN), McDonald’s (MCD), and Microsoft (MSFT) earlier this year, cited Dell’s past interest in crypto, the potential of Bitcoin to serve as an inflation hedge, and growing institutional support for Bitcoin — including BlackRock’s (BLK) suggestion of a 2% Bitcoin allocation — as reasons for the proposal.

However, Dell has asked the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to leave the proposal out of its 2025 proxy materials.

In a letter from its legal team at Hogan Lovells, seen by Blockworks, Dell argued that decisions about what types of cash and investment strategies to pursue are complex and should be left to the company’s management to decide, not shareholders.

The SEC agreed with Dell’s stance, confirming in a letter dated May 9 that it would not recommend enforcement action if the company chose to exclude the proposal from its proxy statement.

The agency stated that the proposal concerns “ordinary business operations,” which supports Dell’s argument that such decisions belong to management.

Further elaborating on why the proposal should be excluded, Dell highlighted that it is an attempt to "micro-manage" company decisions by pushing for a specific financial outcome — in this case, an investment in Bitcoin — and could limit management’s flexibility to make the best decisions for the company and its shareholders.

The company went on to add that such proposals may prevent shareholders from being able to make well-informed judgments on complex financial matters. Instead, they may be based on limited information, which could lead to poor shareholder voting decisions.

Earlier this year, the SEC itself advised companies on how they should approach shareholder proposals. The regulator recommended that companies "fully inform" investors about the proposal and explain why the proposal is "uninteresting and unimportant" to shareholders.

The agency also suggested that companies could highlight how the proposal could negatively impact shareholder value.

Highlighting the broader context, traditional companies across industries are making choices that prioritize risk management, financial independence, and long-term stability over rapid ventures into the cryptocurrency sector.

This preference is evident in the strategic treasury allocations made by companies like BlackRock, in stark contrast to the rapid and significant Bitcoin purchases made by firms like MicroStrategy (NASDAQ:MCRL) (NASDAQ:MICRO) and Block (NYSE:SQ).

Despite the increasing interest in cryptocurrencies among institutions, with several firms now investing in digital assets, many companies are still hesitant to add Bitcoin to their treasury.

Earlier this year, the National Center for Public Policy Research (NCPPR) made a similar request to Meta to consider adding Bitcoin to its treasury. The think tank also penned letters to the CEOs of major firms in 2023, urging them to allocate a portion of their companies’ cash holdings to Bitcoin.

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