Institutional Investors Triple Bitcoin ETF Holdings, Pouring $38.7B Into the Market in Q4
Institutional investors significantly increased their exposure to spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the fourth quarter of 2024, investing $38.7 billion, according to recent Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filings.
Despite Bitcoin’s price volatility, major financial institutions—including hedge funds and pension funds—have continued accumulating Bitcoin ETFs. Data from SEC 13F filings shows that institutional investments tripled from $12.4 billion in Q3, according to Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan.
The SEC requires all firms managing over $100 million to disclose their quarterly holdings, offering insight into how institutional adoption of Bitcoin ETFs is accelerating.
Since their launch in January 2024, Bitcoin ETFs have seen increasing institutional participation. The State of Wisconsin’s Investment Board expanded its holdings to over 6 million shares of BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) by the end of the year.
Hedge fund billionaire Paul Tudor Jones also nearly doubled his IBIT holdings, growing his stake from 4.4 million shares to over 8 million. Similarly, Corvex Management, led by Keith Meister, disclosed ownership of more than 1 million IBIT shares as of December 31.
According to Eric Balchunas, senior ETF analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence, IBIT now has 1,100 institutional holders, an unprecedented number for a newly launched ETF.
“Most new ETFs attract fewer than 10 institutional holders in their first year,” Balchunas noted, adding that the previous record for first-year ETF adoption was likely around 350 institutional investors.
