$181B VanEck Fund Expands Position in MicroStrategy's STRC Perpetuals

VanEck’s $181 billion Preferred Securities ex Financials ETF just made a decisive allocation shift, upping its stake in Strategy’s perpetual preferred stock Stretch ($STRC) to 850,493 shares — worth about $85 million. That’s not a token position; it’s a clear signal that one of the largest ETF managers is willing to back a niche instrument outside the usual banking and insurance names.

Preferreds are often treated as sleepy yield plays, but this move shows how institutional desks are hunting for duration and coupon stability in corners of the market that don’t carry the same regulatory baggage as financial issuers. Strategy’s Stretch series has been trading with relatively thin liquidity, so VanEck’s buy is likely to tighten spreads and put a floor under pricing. Traders watching block prints on Nasdaq already flagged unusual volume spikes last week.

The ETF itself is designed to exclude financials — a deliberate carve‑out that forces managers to look at industrials, utilities, and specialty corporates. By leaning into $STRC, VanEck is effectively betting that perpetual paper from non‑financial issuers can deliver the same defensive characteristics investors expect from bank preferreds, without the systemic risk headlines.

Market chatter in New York and Chicago suggests other funds may follow. BlackRock and State Street have been sniffing around similar perpetual structures, though nothing public has crossed the tape yet. If they do, liquidity in this corner of the preferred market could expand quickly, changing how analysts model spreads versus Treasuries.

Bottom line: VanEck just put $85 million behind a name most retail investors haven’t heard of. That’s the kind of allocation that can reprice an entire segment overnight.