Several large investors have adjusted their Bitcoin ETF holdings after Bitcoin’s price dropped by 12% in the first quarter of 2025. New regulatory filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) reveal a shift in strategy among institutional investors.
While many hedge funds reduced their exposure, other institutions such as universities and sovereign wealth funds used the dip as a chance to buy or rebalance their portfolios.
Millennium Management cut its stake in the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) by 41% and completely exited the Invesco Galaxy Bitcoin ETF. However, it increased its holdings in the ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF and the Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust.
Jersey-based Brevan Howard also trimmed its IBIT holdings by 15.6%. The State of Wisconsin Investment Board, one of the first U.S. pension funds to invest in Bitcoin ETFs, sold its entire 6 million-share position in IBIT.
Meanwhile, Brown University entered the crypto ETF market for the first time by purchasing $4.9 million worth of IBIT shares. Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala sovereign wealth fund increased its IBIT stake to 8.7 million shares, valued at $408.5 million.
According to Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan, the decline in the futures premium—which had previously allowed hedge funds to profit from a basis trade—led to reduced returns and prompted some investors to pull back.
Despite this, Hougan noted that the growing participation of investment advisory firms suggests a slow but steady trend toward broader adoption of Bitcoin ETFs in the long term.
