Knowledge base
In our last article, we looked at what a Bitcoin treasury company actually is, a publicly listed business that holds Bitcoin as a core part of its balance sheet, rather than leaving spare reserves sitting in cash. Now let's make that concrete, and introduce the company behind this Knowledge Base: Smarter Web.
Smarter Web is the trading name of The Smarter Web Company plc (ticker: SWC), a UK-listed public company and the largest Bitcoin treasury company in the UK, holding a substantial, growing reserve of Bitcoin on its balance sheet, alongside an established web-development and acquisitions business.
The company listed on the public market as a web-development business, buying and growing smaller web companies as part of its strategy. Alongside that operating business, it began building a Bitcoin treasury, using an accretive Bitcoin strategy to raise capital and add to its holdings over time.
That treasury has since grown to become the largest of any UK-listed company, at roughly 3,000 BTC, and it's now the defining feature of how the market sees the business. Importantly, this hasn't replaced the original company, Smarter Web continues to operate and acquire web businesses, so it's best described as Bitcoin-treasury-led, not Bitcoin-treasury-only.
You may see the business referred to as either "Smarter Web" or "The Smarter Web Company plc." They're the same company. Smarter Web is the shorter trading name and brand identity now used day-to-day, while The Smarter Web Company plc remains the company's full legal name, the one that appears on official filings, announcements and share certificates. Nothing about the underlying legal entity has changed; it's simply a cleaner, more confident name for the business the company has become.
If terms like "listed" and "ticker" are still a bit new to you, our article on what it means to be a public company and "listed" explains the basics. And when you're ready to understand the mechanics of actually placing a trade, how share dealing works in the UK walks through it step by step, using Smarter Web as the example.
As things stand, Smarter Web holds just under 3,000 BTC, the largest Bitcoin treasury of any UK-listed company. That figure moves over time as the company continues to add to its holdings, so for the current position, it's always worth checking the company's latest announcements and investor relations pages rather than relying on any single article, including this one.
No, and this is worth being completely clear about. An investment in The Smarter Web Company plc (SWC) is an investment in the securities of the Company, it is not a direct investment in Bitcoin, nor a proxy, tracker or exchange-traded product providing direct exposure to Bitcoin.
That said, a significant proportion of the company's balance sheet is held in Bitcoin, so a material rise or fall in the Bitcoin price is likely to affect the value of the company, and in turn the value of its shares. Bitcoin's volatility should therefore be treated as a material risk factor by anyone considering an investment in SWC, alongside the normal risks of investing in any publicly listed company. Nothing in this article is financial advice, and anyone considering an investment should do their own research and consider speaking to a regulated financial adviser.
Our guide to the different ways people invest in Bitcoin sets this option alongside the others (buying Bitcoin directly, or through a Bitcoin ETF) so you can see how each compares.
Smarter Web sits at the intersection of two identities: a genuine operating business that develops and acquires web companies, and the UK's largest listed Bitcoin treasury. Rather than picking one story over the other, the company leads with its Bitcoin treasury while remaining straightforward that the operating business is real and ongoing. Our article on how a Bitcoin treasury company aims to deliver value for shareholders explains the thinking behind that approach in more depth.
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In our next article, Is Bitcoin the Same as Cryptocurrency? Understanding the Difference, we'll clear up one of the most common points of confusion for anyone new to this space — and explain why Smarter Web's focus is on Bitcoin, and Bitcoin alone.
