- Bernstein sees Wall Street overtaking the Bitcoin founder by the end of 2024.
- Reserves of crypto exchanges, private firms, and governments are growing.
- Bitcoin ETFs have smashed records only 10 months after launch.
Bitcoin creator Satoshi Nakamoto’s legendary holdings of 1.1 million Bitcoin — worth some $75 billion — will soon be usurped by Wall Street giants.
That’s according to Bernstein, which noted that BlackRock’s IBIT exchange-traded fund is leading the trend, controlling close to 400,000 Bitcoin, or about $27 billion.
Since their approval in January, US spot Bitcoin ETFs have accumulated nearly one million Bitcoin.
A shift in Bitcoin’s largest holder could happen any day now.
“By 2024 end, we expect Wall Street to replace Satoshi as the top Bitcoin wallet,” Bernstein wrote in a report.
With nearly 95% of Bitcoin’s total supply already mined, institutions and funds have been quickly snapping up what remains.
While cumulative ETF holdings are approaching the level of Satoshi’s stash, they’re not exactly the same. Satoshi’s holdings are believed to belong to a mostly single entity.
The next biggest single holder of Bitcoin, MicroStrategy, with $17 billion, pales in comparison to Nakamoto.
Institutional dominance
BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust, which alone manages around 400,000 Bitcoin with over $26 billion in assets under management, makes up the bulk of ETF holdings.
“Not yet 10 months old and the ETFs are 97% of the way to holding 1 million BTC,” said Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas. He added that this was “87% of the way to passing Satoshi.”
Crypto ETFs have even been dominating their traditional finance peers.
“Of the 575 ETFs introduced in 2024, 14 of the top 30 by inflows are either spot Bitcoin or Ethereum ETFs, according to ETFStore President Nate Geraci. “Crypto appetite from TradFi is real,” he said, using a portmanteau of the words traditional and finance.
Almost $22 billion has flowed into these spot Bitcoin ETFs in less than 11 months.
Other notable holders
Beyond ETFs, crypto exchanges rank among the largest Bitcoin holders. However, because these are collective holdings, many argue that they shouldn’t count as single entities.
Coinbase leads this group with almost one million Bitcoin held in custody on behalf of its retail and institutional clients.
When adding up their wallets, other major exchanges like Binance, Bitfinex, and Kraken also hold more than one million Bitcoin.
Among private firms, MicroStrategy, founded by Bitcoin evangelist Michael Saylor, holds over 252,000 Bitcoin — worth about $17 billion as of its latest filing.
The firm’s aggressive accumulation strategy, backed by convertible bonds, allows it to expand reserves through what one analyst called “intelligent leverage” without draining cash flow.
Government holdings also play a role in Bitcoin distribution.
The US government holds nearly 200,000 Bitcoin from criminal seizures, making it the largest state-held reserve globally.
