TD Cowen lifts Strive target 27% on bitcoin balance sheet plan

On Coinbase at 14:00 UTC Friday, an aggressive sell sweep crossed the books, flushing BTC through $81,500 on 420 coins of aggregate spot volume. TD Cowen raised its equity price target on asset manager Strive by 27% on Oct. 16, 2026, crediting fresh balance-sheet funding and receding warrant drag. The bank's upward adjustment ties directly to Strive arranging new capital earmarked specifically for corporate treasury accumulation. The research note highlighted that historical warrant-related structural selling on Strive shares is subsiding. That reduction in dilution opens clean runway for capital allocation into spot bitcoin. Corporate balance sheet buying continues to establish an alternative liquidity sink outside regulated spot exchange-traded funds.

CoinGecko priced BTC at $81,524 at 14:00 UTC, down 0.91% over 24 hours and down 1.05% over seven days. Total market valuation across the sector fell 3.85% to $2.75 trillion, with aggregate 24-hour exchange volume reaching $139,157.5 billion. Despite broader token compression, bitcoin maintained 59.4% market dominance, while ether slipped to a 10.7% share.

Strive balance sheet strategy vs spot metrics

Strive's expansion strategy mirrors treasury models where public debt and equity issuance fund direct spot accumulation. By securing designated capital facilities, the firm isolates corporate operational cash flows from its underlying coin reserves. TD Cowen noted this structure leaves the company less vulnerable to immediate liquidation demands during spot pullbacks. Trading desks are tracking whether corporate accumulation can offset softening derivatives premiums. Friday's intraday low of $80,761 tested major weekly support bands before recovering to the $81,504 session close. With circulating supply standing at 20.10 million tokens out of the 21.00 million programmatic limit, corporate treasury float absorption steadily limits available exchange inventory.