Top asset managers cut spot Bitcoin ETF holdings by 40% after Q1 price drop
The post Top asset managers cut spot Bitcoin ETF holdings by 40% after Q1 price drop appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com.
In the first quarter of 2025, leading asset managers significantly reduced their holdings in spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs). According to new regulatory filings with the US SEC, this move is in response to a 12% drop in Bitcoin’s price and diminishing profitability in associated trading strategies. The shift represents a cautious pivot of investor sentiment, especially given the deluge of enthusiasm analysts and investors greeted these ETFs with when they debuted in January 2024. Hedge funds led the retreat, with Millennium Management—the largest hedge fund in the U.S., cutting its exposure to BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT) by 41%. The firm now owns 17.6 million shares. It also fully exited its stake in the Invesco Galaxy Bitcoin ETF. At the same time, Millennium added to its holdings in two smaller funds, the ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF and the Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust. This may indicate a changed strategy toward funds with different fee structures or performance profiles. Brevan Howard, based in Jersey, did the same. It trimmed its IBIT holdings by about 15.6% during the same period. Hedge funds were responding to a crash in the premium on Bitcoin futures over spot prices, which collapsed as traders bet that several factors were exaggerating demand. Institutional investors shift their Bitcoin ETF holdings Not only hedge funds — public pension funds, too, re-evaluated their stakes. State of Wisconsin Investment Board (SWIB), among the first institutional investors to buy spot Bitcoin ETFs, sold the whole of its 6 million shares position in IBIT in Q1 2025. That followed a huge bet on Bitcoin in early 2024. In contrast, Brown University quietly entered the crypto investment space with a surprising move, purchasing approximately $4.9 million worth of shares in BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), according to a filing dated March 31. The Ivy League…
Filed under: News - @ May 16, 2025 3:27 am