Institutional Investors Double Down on Bitcoin ETFs in Q2

Bitwise reports that around 66% of institutional investors held or increased Bitcoin holdings in Q2 through US-based spot exchange-traded funds.

As for asset managers, 22% maintained their position in Bitcoin ETFs while 44% boosted their holdings; Bitwise’s investment chief called this a “pretty good result.”

In the second quarter, 44% of asset managers boosted their Bitcoin BTC$58,568 ETF holdings, while 22% remained unchanged, according to 13F filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

In a post on X on August 15, Bitwise Chief Investment Officer Matt Hougan said, “A pretty good result, on par with other ETFs.” Only 21% reduced their investments, while 13% sold them.

All institutional investment managers that oversee assets worth at least $100 million are obliged to file a quarterly report with the SEC, known as Form 13F.

Even if the asset value of spot Bitcoin ETFs dropped by 14.5% over three months, the second quarter of 2024 was positive for these funds. Hougan continued:

“Institutional investors continued to adopt Bitcoin ETFs in Q2. The trend is intact.”

Across all ten funds, Hougan noted that there were 1,924 holder/ETF pairs, an increase from 1,479 in Q1. He remarked, “That’s a 30% increase; not bad considering prices fell in Q2.”

Additionally, he claimed that most institutional investors were “diamond hands” and did not panic sell during periods of increased volatility like retail does.

“If you thought institutional investors would panic at the first sign of volatility, the data suggest otherwise. They’re pretty steady.”

Regarding the leading ETF holders, Hougan said that hedge funds like Schonfeld, Capula, Boothbay, and Millennium were “big players.” But before he ended, he mentioned that there are a lot of advisers, family offices, and particularly institutional investors as well:

“ETFs are a big tent that attracts a wide variety of investors. It’s kind of great to see Millennium nestled up against the State of Wisconsin in these ETF filings. Over time, I’d like to see wealth managers and pensions account for a growing share.”

On August 14, in a 13F filing, investment bank Morgan Stanley stated that as of June 30, it owned 5,500,626 shares of BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust, valued at $188 million. Morgan Stanley is now ranked among the top five fund managers.

The massive financial firm Goldman Sachs disclosed holdings in IBIT and other spot Bitcoin ETFs worth more than $238 million.