Feb 5 (Reuters) -

Strategy, the biggest corporate holder of bitcoin

, reported a fourth consecutive quarterly loss on

Wednesday as the company booked an impairment charge on its

stockpile of the cryptocurrency.

The Tysons Corner, Virginia-based company booked

impairment losses from digital assets of $1.01 billion in the

quarter, compared with $39.2 million a year ago.

Strategy, formerly known as MicroStrategy ( MSTR ) and founded by

Michael Saylor, has emerged as one of the biggest beneficiaries

of the soaring popularity of bitcoin. Its shares jumped nearly

five-fold last year, helping it secure a spot in the Nasdaq 100

index in December.

The company began buying and holding bitcoin in 2020 as

revenue from its software business waned. Strategy held about

471,107 bitcoins as of Feb. 2.

Last year, Strategy unveiled plans to raise $42 billion

over the next three years to buy more bitcoins.

The company's net loss was $670.8 million, or $3.03 per

share, in the three months ended Dec. 31, compared with a profit

of $89.1 million, or 50 cents per share, a year earlier.

NEW NAME

The company earlier in the day said it would now operate as

"Strategy" and unveiled a new logo to emphasize its commitment

to the cryptocurrency space.

The rebranding was "a natural evolution" as it seeks to

integrate bitcoin - the world's biggest and best-known

cryptocurrency - into the heart of its business operations, the

company said.

Bernstein analyst Gautam Chhugani said the company

probably wanted to emphasize bitcoin as its core business and to

distance away from the software arm, which is no longer

material.

The company continues to be an aggressive investor in

bitcoin. In the statement on Wednesday announcing its

rebranding, MicroStrategy ( MSTR ) defined itself as the world's "first

and largest Bitcoin Treasury Company".

Its new logo includes a stylized "B" that signifies its

bitcoin strategy, it said.