Businesses and corporations hold the largest amounts of Bitcoin and are the purchasers of the year, overtaking retail investors and exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
Businesses like Michael Saylor’s Strategy have acquired more Bitcoin than any other investor category, sending the entire value of their 157K BTC to around $16BN at Bitcoin’s current prices. Strategy is estimated at almost 77% of the entire group’s value, surrounded by smaller-cap firms.
Following corporate adoption, ETFs emerged as influential newcomers in the Bitcoin market. The first Bitcoin ETF launched in the U.S. was the ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF in 2021, though it only tracked Bitcoin futures contracts — not spot Bitcoin.
The first spot Bitcoin ETF was finally greenlighted and launched in January 2024 by BlackRock, after numerous legal rejections. Several other issuers did the same on that well-awaited day, including VanEck, ARK Invest, and Fidelity.
Since then, spot Bitcoin ETFs have gained massive traction by making it significantly easier for investors to gain exposure to Bitcoin through traditional brokerages. Before these ETFs existed, investors typically had to use crypto exchanges to buy assets like BTC directly, often trading against pairs like BTC/USDT or ETH/BTC.
Important note: investors don’t buy pairs per se, but trade one currency for another using pairs. The most common starting step is buying and trading USDT for BTC or ETH via the abovementioned pairs.
Corporate hoarding outpaces issuance rates
Corporate BTC hoarding rates have outpaced the rate of coin issuance considerably, which puts pressure on the available supply as demand for BTC holds. This trend can increase prices and possibly adoption rates via a self-reinforcing cycle.
Concerns about crypto compliance and legality also wane as investors are expecting a new U.S. regulatory landscape pushed forward by the latest, allegedly crypto-sympathetic administration. Newly elected SEC chairman Atkins has talked about new regulatory changes that will add an extra layer of safety in crypto investments and trading, as well as crypto issuance.
According to the head, developing a relevant regulatory framework for crypto assets is a predominant priority. This could pave the foundation for more corporate adoption as more companies will find it safer and easier to enter the crypto space.
As per statistics from Bitcoin Treasuries for February of this year, 80 publicly listed companies possess 632,381 BTC on their balance sheets. Recent coverage presents Bitcoin more advantageously. Moreover, the new media visibility is prompting regulators to make guidelines on Bitcoin management, classification, and monetization clearer and simpler.
This heightened attention is a significant shift in corporate treasury strategies, with more businesses now perceiving Bitcoin as a viable asset. However, high volatility and persistent regulatory uncertainty remain substantial challenges, emphasizing the need for corporate frontrunners to adopt a long-term, strategic perspective for Bitcoin exposure.
Finance and investment firms
Finance and investment firms are the largest corporate Bitcoin adopters, representing 35.7% of total corporate exposure. Tech firms follow them at 16.8%, and professional and consulting companies at 16.5%. The remaining share is spread across various industries, such as:
- Real estate
- Healthcare organizations
- Non-profits
- Consumer and industrial sectors
- Firms in transportation, agriculture, and energy.
Here are two of the largest companies that made a name for big BTC acquisitions.
- Tesla grabbed headlines in 2021 when it acquired BTC worth $1.5BN. Nevertheless, the company has since sold most of its BTC holdings.
- Block Inc. has accustomed the world to recurrent Bitcoin acquisitions, aligning it with the company’s decentralized financial culture.
Exchange-traded funds
ETFs emerge as the next biggest Bitcoin buyer category after corporations, having increased their net BTC by 49K BTC, which is worth around $5BN at current prices. ETFs’ Bitcoin-fueled investment vehicles see high demand thanks to their lending of Bitcoin value that doesn’t necessitate investors possessing and caring for the asset themselves.
ETFs buy Bitcoin to meet this demand for regulated, accessible exposure to the asset without the complexities that may arise with other methods of leveraging Bitcoin’s worth.
Firms in this industry buy and hold Bitcoin, and their spot ETFs allow institutions and retail investors to participate in Bitcoin’s price movements via traditional accounts. Therefore, they eliminate the need for private wallets, crypto exchanges, etc.
ETF providers offer Bitcoin exposure, and in exchange, they attract new capital and money from management fees. Besides profits, this positions them competitively in the rapidly expanding digital asset space.
Governments
Governments followed the ETFs in the largest Bitcoin buyers, increasing their holdings by approximately 19K BTC. While some of this accumulation comes from seizures associated with unlawful investigations, a rising number of governments are approaching Bitcoin as a strategic reserve asset.
The U.S. has recently launched a National Bitcoin Reserve, aka a reserve asset like numerous other similar piles, intended to improve national economic resilience.
The reserve’s development is a step in the administration’s effort to make the nation a global crypto hub. A separate reserve holds assets like Ethereum and Solana and shares a similar purpose of elevating the digital asset sector.
In countries facing inflation, capital controls, or sanctions, investors consider Bitcoin for its potential to act as a hedge against traditional currency risk.
In more progressive cases, like El Salvador, Bitcoin is being embraced as legal tender, having businesses take Bitcoin for their services or products. This serves as a tool for financial innovation, signaling a broader shift in how nation-states approach digital assets.
Retail investors
Retail traders saw a net decrease of 247K BTC so far this year in the number of holdings. Wallets owning less than 0.1 BTC, which are generally associated with smaller retail investors, collectively ditched 387 BTC over the past month, indicating a continued exit or consolidation among individual traders.
However, it’s a normal turn of the situation in the crypto space, as things are cyclical and bullish breakouts follow bearish breakouts and vice versa. Bitcoin price gains led many holders to drop their assets and cash out or exchange them for other cryptos, whereas the selloffs.
It’s important to understand that many factors should shape your Bitcoin investment strategy and moves. Trading volumes, for instance, are important when assessing breakouts as they give more substance to these phenomena.
Conclusion
All the changes enumerated above combined resulted in a 154% increase in corporate ownership since last year, according to River firm’s studies. As demand for Bitcoin holds, you’re invited to monitor market movements to stay ahead of any emerging trend change.
