Crypto ETFs are accelerating their advance into the mainstream financial world. In addition to a surge in applications for altcoin ETFs, institutional holdings of spot BTC and ETH ETFs have risen sharply.
According to reports from The Block and Cryptoslate, as of Q4 2024, institutional investors' interest in spot ETH ETFs has increased significantly, with the institutional holding ratio of ETH ETFs rising from 4.8% to 14.5%; meanwhile, institutional investors hold 25.4% of the assets under management (AUM) of spot BTC ETFs, totaling $26.8 billion, a 113% increase in their holding ratio and a 69% increase in total AUM to $78.8 billion in Q3-Q4 2024. Especially as more sovereign states/companies begin to include BTC in their strategic reserves and the staking expectations for ETH ETFs continue to rise, the market size of these ETFs will be further expanded.
This article summarizes the BTC/ETH spot ETF holdings of 15 institutions in 2024, covering investment firms, hedge funds, banks, and pension funds. The total value of their holdings exceeds $13.98 billion, with Goldman Sachs, Millennium, SIG, and Brevan Howard each holding billions of dollars. Compared to the mainstream institutions' BTC spot ETF holdings in multiple quarters of 2024 previously reported by PANews, these institutions have significantly increased their allocations. In terms of holding strategies, different institutions have different market expectations and asset allocation directions, and many institutions made large-scale increases in Q4 2024, with BlackRock's IBIT being particularly attractive. In terms of holding structure, the vast majority of institutions are mainly invested in BTC spot ETF products, but from Q4 onwards, many institutions have increased their investment in ETH ETFs, mainly BlackRock's ETHA, Fidelity's FETH, and Grayscale's ETH Trust.
Goldman Sachs: IBIT holdings account for 83%, Grayscale ETF significantly reduced
As of Q4 2024, Goldman Sachs held nearly $2.34 billion in BTC spot ETFs, of which IBIT accounted for 83.7%, with the rest in FBTC and GBTC. Compared to previous quarters, Goldman Sachs has significantly increased its holdings of IBIT and FBTC, while reducing and liquidating GBTC, BTCO, BITB, ARKB, and BTCW.
At the same time, Goldman Sachs also holds over $470 million in ETH spot ETFs, but Grayscale's ETH Trust was significantly reduced in Q3, while BlackRock's ETHA and Fidelity's FETH were significantly increased.
Millennium: Total holdings exceed $2.8 billion, IBIT and FBTC more favored
Millennium is one of the world's largest alternative asset management companies. As of Q4 2024, Millennium held nearly $2.62 billion in BTC spot ETFs, with IBIT and FBTC accounting for 60.5% and 26.5% respectively, the rest being BITB, ARKB, GBTC, and BTCO. Compared to Q3, Millennium's holding proportion increased the most in GBTC, IBIT, and BITB, and reduced FBTC and Grayscale's BTC.
In ETH spot ETF holdings, Millennium holds over $180 million, including ETHA, ETH, FETH, and ETHW. Among them, Grayscale's ETH was subject to a large-scale reduction by Millennium in Q4, while ETHA's holdings increased by 156%.
SIG: IBIT becomes the largest holding, significantly reduced ETH ETF
SIG is a global quantitative trading company. As of December 31, 2024, SIG held over $1.89 billion in BTC spot ETFs, including IBIT, GBTC, FBTC, and BITO. Among them, IBIT had the largest increase in Q4, with an investment value of over $1.42 billion, accounting for 75.1% of the total. SIG also held about $11.36 million in ETH spot ETFs, including ETHA, FETH, ETHV, and ETH, but these products all saw double-digit reductions in holdings compared to the previous quarter.
Brevan Howard: Over $1.4 billion invested in BlackRock ETFs
Brevan Howard is one of the world's largest macro hedge funds, with $40 billion in assets under management. As of Q4 2024, Brevan Howard added over $1.38 billion in IBIT in the quarter, making it one of the largest shareholders. Brevan Howard also increased its holdings of ETHA by about $94.15 million in Q4.
CapulaInvestmentManagement: Holdings approach $940 million, continuously increasing IBIT and FBTC
CapulaInvestmentManagement is one of Europe's largest hedge fund management companies. As of Q4 2024, CapulaInvestmentManagement held nearly $940 million in IBIT and FBTC, and the institution has been continuously increasing its holdings since Q2.
Schonfeld Strategic Advisors: Holdings exceed $900 million, new addition of ETH ETF in Q4
Schonfeld Strategic Advisors is a hedge fund managing $13 billion in assets. As of December 31, 2024, Schonfeld Strategic Advisors held $850 million in BTC spot ETFs, mainly FBTC, IBIT, and BITB, all of which were increased to varying degrees in Q4. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors also added about $75.28 million in ETHA and FETH in Q4.
Symmetry Investment: IBIT's quarterly increase exceeds 36 times
Symmetry Investment is a fund management company with a macro-hedging strategy. As of Q4 2024, Symmetry Investment held $670 million in IBIT, an increase of over 36 times from the previous quarter's holdings.
Avenir Capital: IBIT holdings account for 99%, FBTC significantly reduced
Avenir Capital is a family office controlled by Huobi founder Li Lin. As of December 31, 2024, Avenir Capital held about $600 million in BlackRock's IBIT and Fidelity's FBTC, of which IBIT accounted for 99%. Compared to previous quarters, Avenir Capital chose to increase IBIT and significantly reduced FBTC in Q4 2024.
Mubadala Investments: Increased nearly $440 million in IBIT, becoming the 7th largest holder
Mubadala Investment Company, the Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund, is the second largest sovereign wealth fund in Abu Dhabi and one of the largest in the world.
Mubadala Investments began increasing its holdings of BTC spot ETFs in Q4 2024 and is the 7th largest known holder of IBIT. As of December 31, 2024, Mubadala Investments held 8.235 million IBIT, worth nearly $440 million.
TudorInvestment: Continued to increase IBIT holdings to $430 million
TudorInvestment is the investment company of billionaire Paul Tudor Jones, managing over $10 billion. As of last Q4, TudorInvestment held nearly $430 million in BlackRock's IBIT, 9.2 times the holding size in Q2.
State of Wisconsin Investment Board: Holdings worth over $330 million in IBIT
The State of Wisconsin Investment Board (SWIB), established in 1951, currently manages over $156 billion in assets, primarily serving the Wisconsin Retirement System (WRS) and the State Investment Fund (SIF).
As of December 31, 2024, SWIB held 6.06 million shares of BlackRock's IBIT, up 109.7% from the previous quarter's nearly 2.9 million shares. Based on the current IBIT price of $55.33, SWIB's holdings are worth over $330 million. But SWIB chose to liquidate 1.013 million shares of Grayscale's GBTC in Q2 2024.
LPL Financial: Holdings exceed $150 million, heavily weighted in GBTC and IBIT
LPL Financial is the largest independent broker-dealer in the US. As of December 31, 2024, LPL Financial held about $140 million in BTC spot ETFs, mainly GBTC and IBIT, as well as Grayscale's BTC Trust, EZBC, and ARKB. In this quarter, LPL Financial increased its holdings of IBIT and EZBC, and newly bought BTC, BTCW, and BITO. LPL Financial also holds $16.39 million in ETHE, ETHA, and Grayscale's ETH Trust.
Bank of Montreal: Significantly expanded investment size in Q4, IBIT accounts for the majority
Bank of Montreal is Canada's third largest bank by market capitalization, with total assets exceeding $1 trillion. As of December 31, 2024, Bank of Montreal held about $150 million in BTC spot ETFs, of which about $139 million was invested in IBIT, with the remainder diversified in FBTC, ARKB, GBTC, and BITO. Bank of Montreal significantly increased its IBIT holdings in Q4 2024, while reducing and liquidating many BTC spot ETF positions in Q3, including Franklin Templeton's EZBC and Grayscale's BTC Trust.
At the same time, the Bank of Montreal also holds an Altcoin spot ETF worth approximately $3.869 million. Among them, ETHE of Grayscale and ETHA of BlackRock were new investments added in Q4, while FETH of Fidelity and the Grayscale Ethereum Trust ETH were significantly reduced, and even completely cleared.
Barclays: Holds over $130 million worth of IBIT, GBTC cleared
Barclays is one of the largest commercial banks in the UK. As of Q4 2024, Barclays held 2.473 million units of IBIT, worth over $130 million. However, the 2,850 units of GBTC purchased by Barclays in Q1 2024 were cleared in Q3.
Multicoin Capital: Holds about $110 million in assets, repurchases GBTC
Multicoin Capital is a crypto fund celebrity, gaining widespread market attention for its many crypto investment articles. As of the fourth quarter of 2024, Multicoin Capital held about $110 million worth of Grayscale GBTC and BTC Mini Trust, of which GBTC was cleared in Q3 and then repurchased in the current quarter.
HighTower: Holdings exceed $110 million, increased holdings of multiple Ethereum ETFs in Q4
HighTower is one of the largest registered investment advisors and wealth management firms in the US, managing $130 billion in assets. HighTower's Bitcoin spot ETF holdings include GBTC, FBTC, IBIT, BITX and ARKB, totaling nearly $110 million. Among them, HighTower increased its holdings of HODL and IBIT relatively more in the fourth quarter. In Ethereum spot ETF products, HighTower only held about $5 million worth of ETHE, Grayscale Ethereum Trust ETH and FETH, most of which were purchased in the current quarter.
