Investors short three crypto stocks as a possible hedge against Bitcoin's rise

S3 Partners data shows heavy short interest in Strategy Inc, Strive Inc and Coinbase Global. S3 Partners says the short interest could reflect bets that the stocks will fall. It could also be a hedge against Bitcoin's rising price. Bitcoin recently climbed above $80,000. The iShares Bitcoin Trust has low short interest. S3 Partners says this indicates investors hedging Bitcoin may be shorting Bitcoin-linked stocks or a major cryptocurrency exchange instead of Bitcoin ETFs. Strategy and Strive hold Bitcoin on their balance sheets. Coinbase is a major cryptocurrency exchange. The three stocks each have a correlation coefficient of 0.7 or higher with Bitcoin. Their correlations with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 are much lower. S3 Partners singled out Strive as much smaller and less followed than the other stocks. Strive also has a much higher short-interest rate. Strive shares rose 33.9% over the last month. Strive shares rose 210% over the last six months. These gains could reduce Strive's short-squeeze potential because its share price is already elevated. High volatility in cryptocurrency and related stocks in past years means a squeeze remains possible. Around 26% of Strive shares are short. Another Bitcoin rally could renew attention on Strive and its potential for a short squeeze.