GameStop stock (GME) rose about 5% in early trading on Friday after CNBC reported the video game retailer is exploring investing in cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin (BTC-USD).

CNBC specified the company may not follow through with the investments and is still exploring the option. The stock jumped as much as 20% after the bell on Thursday before giving back some gains.

A social media post from GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen over the weekend sparked speculation over GameStop's interest in cryptocurrency. Cohen posted a picture on X with Strategy (MSTR) CEO Michael Saylor early Sunday morning. Saylor has famously hitched his company, formerly known as MicroStrategy, to bitcoin as it now holds more than 447,000 tokens.

Strategy called itself "the world’s first and largest bitcoin treasury company" in its name-change announcement last week. Shares of Strategy are up roughly 370% over the past year as the company has continued buying bitcoin amid a nearly 100% rally in the cryptocurrency over the same time frame.

As GameStop shares rose after Cohen's post, Sherwood's Luke Kawa noted that investors could be betting that GameStop will follow Strategy's bitcoin buying model.

"The warm market response to Cohen’s tweet suggests that traders are hoping that Cohen uses some of GameStop’s $4.6 billion in cash and cash-like securities to take a page from Saylor’s playbook. (That playbook has one rule: buy bitcoin)," Kawa wrote.

Back in December 2023, GameStop's board gave Cohen the authority to use the company's capital to make investments. That paved the way for the video game operator to use its cash like a holding company similar to the Daily Journal (DJCO) or Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-B, BRK-A).

Since hitting a high of $64 per share in May 2024 amid a meme stock revival, GameStop shares have slumped and are off about 15% in the past month. The company has yet to report fourth quarter earnings.

Josh Schafer is a reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow him on X @_joshschafer.

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