Artificial intelligence company Genius Group (GNS) has adopted bitcoin {{BTC}} as its primary treasury asset, committing 90% of its current and future reserves to be held in bitcoin, according to a press release.
Shares in the Singapore-based company rose as much as 50% in premarket trading before giving up much of the move. They remain 10% higher than Monday's close, at $0.70 per share.
The company said it plans to acquire an initial $120 million worth of bitcoin -- about 1,380 BTC at current prices -- that will be held for the long term. It will also enable bitcoin payments for its Edtech platform. The decision follows a restructuring of the company's board to include several people with backgrounds in crypto and Web3 technologies.
Genius follows a path set by Michael Saylor-led software developer MicroStrategy, which now holds 279,420 BTC ($24 billion) after adopting a strategy of acquiring bitcoin in 2020 as a hedge against inflation. In May, medical device maker Semler Scientific said it planned to do the same, and now holds more than 1,000 bitcoin. Its decision came days after Tokyo-based Metaplanet, an investment adviser, joined the movement. It also now has just over 1,000 BTC.
"We see Bitcoin as being the primary store of value that will power these exponential technologies," Thomas Power, a director of Genius Group, said in the statement. "The compelling case that we believe Michael Saylor and Microstrategy have made for public companies to invest in Bitcoin as their primary treasury reserve asset is one that we fully endorse."