It was a bread and circus week for markets, and the Bitcoin-equities crowd couldn’t help but throw peanuts at KindlyMD (NASDAQ: NAKA) and its carnival barkers for the fledgling treasury company’s Q3 earnings. NAKA recorded a net loss of $86 million in Q3, driven mostly by a $22 million unrealized loss on its bitcoin holdings and a $59.8 million write down on KindlyMD’s acquisition of Nakamoto Holdings. The most salacious data point though, as noted by former Bitcoin Magazine Managing Editor Joakim Book, was NAKA’s self-reported cost basis on its 5,398 BTC treasury: $681,247,326. That comes out to $126,203 per coin. NAKA bought the top. – link
OUR TAKE: Everyone loves a sacrificial lamb.
NAKA has become the scapegoat (or posterchild, depending on your allegiance) for 2025’s spectacular collapse in bitcoin treasury companies, so its earnings release turned into a bloodsport on social media for disaffected investors, bitcoin treasury bears, and generally anyone with an axe to grind toward David Bailey, KindlyMD’s CEO.
The company first shook investor confidence with its $563 million private equity placement (PIPE), which precipitated tremendous selling pressure once PIPE equity unlocked in September, driving the stock below $1.
And as all of this was happening, NAKA plowed its PIPE funds and the $200 million convertible note that accompanied it into bitcoin at its all-time high — so that’s not a great look either.
Bitcoin has cratered even deeper since Q3’s close, obviously, so now might be a swell time for NAKA to lower that cost basis, you might think.
Well astute reader, NAKA does have $24.2 million in cash on hand, but that won’t even cover an annualized run rate for its Q3 G&A ($5 million) and payroll ($5.8 million). And what’s more, the company has little wiggle room to fundraise in the current market environment. NAKA opened a $5 billion at-the-market offering in August, but it only sold $5.7 million through this facility (at an average stock price of $4.15, mind you).
Oh and one more teensy thing: 2,908 BTC out of NAKA’s treasury is now encumbered under a $206 million, 7% loan the company took from Antalpha that is due December 6, 2025–yes, less than a month. And NAKA only took that loan to refinance another loan from Two Prime it made in September at 8.5% — another refinancing event which NAKA used to pay down its $200 million convertible debt.
It’s like a Russian Nesting Doll of bad debt.
Nakamoto also reported selling ~367 BTC over the quarter to “allocat[e] a portion of its Bitcoin holdings to strategic investments in Bitcoin focused companies operating in international capital markets,” including Japanese bitcoin treasury company Metaplanet (OTC: MTPLF) and a Swiss bitcoin treasury company FUTURE Holdings Ag. (NASDAQ: FUTU).
“We believe every enduring enterprise must grow, invest, earn, and save—and we’re applying the same fundamentals through the lens of Bitcoin,” said KindlyMD CIO Tyler Evans in a NAKA Q3 earnings press release. “Our Bitcoin treasury isn’t a passive reserve. It’s a strategic tool. By selectively investing in and acquiring companies that strengthen the broader Bitcoin ecosystem and support our operating goals, we aim to compound long-term shareholder value while reinforcing the foundation of our business. As we continue to execute our strategy, we will prioritize investments in enterprises that are aligned with our long-term vision.”
Salary compensation
Now all of that might be fine for critics, if it weren’t for the fact that NAKA executive compensation is pretty darn up there for a stock down 97% in six months.
Looking at cash compensation only:
Tyler Evans (CIO) – Annual Salary: $500,000 | Signing Bonus $250,000
Andrew Creighton (CCO) – Annual Salary: $600,000 | Signing Bonus: $250,000
NAKA CEO David Bailey’s interest and position in the company are couched in KindlyMD’s contract with BTC Consulting LLC., “an entity controlled by Mr. Bailey (the “BTC Consulting Agreement”), pursuant to which Mr. Bailey will serve as Chief Executive Officer and provide strategic leadership services to the [KindlyMD],” per a company 8-K.
BTC Consulting LLC is earning $58,333 per month for Bailey’s services to NAKA, or just under $700,000 annualized, and it also received a $250,000 signing bonus.
(Oh, and one last thing to note here, let’s not forget the private jet clauses for Bailey and other executives: “the Company may provide, at its sole cost and expense, for Employee’s use of private aircraft travel for business travel”…).
Bitcoin treasury mania
Ok, put down the pitchforks for a second, because I shouldn’t single out NAKA here.
These executive compensation packages are becoming the norm for bitcoin treasury plays. Strive (NASDAQ: ASST) CEO Matt Cole, for example, makes $800,000 a year, and Strive’s CFO Benjamin Pham makes $500,000.
Point is, everyone is punching down on NAKA because it’s easy given how incredible its decline has been and — in hindsight — how many mistakes it made when structuring its capital (and then deploying it).
But the entire bitcoin treasury market is having a come to Jesus moment right now with every major name down YTD, and if you look around at executive compensation, capital strategy, and market timing, there’s more in common binding these companies than not.
Of course, that’s not to say that we shouldn’t criticize them for things like outrageous executive compensation when their stocks are in the gutter. We should, but critics should also ask what possessed the boards of a company like KindlyMD to approve these packages in the first place when they appointed new captains to steer the ships.
Let the soul searching commence!
Update November 21, 2025 1:00 PM EST: Clarified the exact amount of bitcoin NAKA has locked in its Antalpha loan as of the end of Q3, 2025.
Update November 25, 2025 11:01 AM EST: Included a statement from NAKA’s CIO Tyler Evans and included reference to NAKA rotating a portion of its bitcoin holdings into bitcoin treasury equities.
