GameStop, MicroStrategy shares jump on photo of Ryan Cohen, Michael Saylor

GameStop and MicroStrategy shares popped on Monday on speculation that the struggling video game retailer might embrace crypto.

The famed meme stocks boss Ryan Cohen posted a photo over the weekend with MicroStrategy CEO Michael Saylor, whose firm is the largest corporate holder of bitcoin.

GameStop stock jumped 7% on Monday and MicroStrategy shares rose 2%.

GameStop and MicroStrategy did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The flailing video game retailer previously flirted with crypto projects. In 2023, GameStop removed its cryptocurrency wallets from the market due to “regulatory uncertainty.” 

The digital asset wallets allowed users to send, store, receive and use cryptocurrency and non-fungible tokens.

Cohen, founder of online dog food seller Chewy, bought shares in GameStop in 2020 and joined the board in 2021 as it was swept up in the Reddit WallStreetBets meme stock frenzy – which sent its stock skyrocketing more than 2,500% over the past five years.

Cohen aimed to turn around GameStop’s brick-and-mortar business, but the retailer has continued to struggle.

Its stock has remained highly volatile, influenced by Roaring Kitty, the investor behind the 2020 GameStop trading mania.

Saylor, who founded MicroStrategy in 1989 as a software and tech consulting firm, pocketed more than $350 million from stock sales last year. He renamed the company to Strategy last week.

The firm has raised billions of dollars over the past year through the sale of stock or convertible bonds in order to purchase more bitcoin.

The company holds about $47 billion worth of bitcoins on its balance sheet, or about 2.5% of the total supply.