Bitcoin ETFs Now Hold a Record 1.25M BTC, More Than Satoshi

• The U.S. spot BTC ETFs have since surpassed Satoshi Nakamoto’s holdings of 1.096 million coins.
• Wall Street analysts, led by Bitwise CIO Matthew Sigel, expect BTC price to rally to new ATH before the end of year.
• Traders have a high conviction of a 25bps Fed rate cut in September amid executive pressure.

The fleet of United States spot Bitcoin ETFs has officially reached a new all-time high, with total holdings surging to a landmark 1.25 million coins. The meteoric growth, which now sees the ETFs holding more BTC than Satoshi Nakamoto’s fabled 1.1 million coin stash, is being driven by Wall Street titans BlackRock and Fidelity.

According to the latest market data, BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) alone now holds 748,968 BTC, accounting for a staggering 59.9% of all Bitcoin held in U.S. spot ETFs. The fund has become a go-to for major institutional players, attracting significant capital from the likes of Brown University, Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth fund Mubadala, and Harvard’s management company.

This institutional rush comes as the market is going through short-term volatility, as Bitcoin Price Dips and Traders Await Fed Chair Powell’s Jackson Hole Speech.

The Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) has recorded a cumulative cash inflow of $11.9 billion, thus currently holding about 199,798 BTCs. The rise of IBIT and FBTC has coincided with a downfall of Grayscale’s GBTC, which once had over 620k BTCs but now only has 180,576 BTCs.

Top Reasons Why Spot Bitcoin ETFs are Attracting More Capital 

This palpable demand for Bitcoin is rooted in a combination of the asset’s growing recognition as “digital gold” and, crucially, a more favorable regulatory environment. Since President Donald Trump’s second term began, clearer crypto regulations have attracted significant capital. 

Institutions started flooding in towards Bitcoin when on August 7th, President Trump signed an executive order dubbed “Democratizing Access to Alternative Assets for 401(k) Investors.” This landmark order thereafter opened the floodgates for retirement funds to invest in Bitcoin and other digital assets, dramatically expanding the pool of potential long-term institutional buyers. 

This is in stark contrast to Main Street, where Bitcoin Retail Sentiment Collapsed, creating a slight divergence in the market for the time being.

What’s the Expected Price Impact

The rising demand for Bitcoin through the U.S. spot BTC ETFs has increased the supply vs demand shock. According to market data analysis from CoinGlass, the overall supply of BTC on centralized exchanges has declined from 2.95 million, as recorded on the first days of spot BTC ETFs trading, to about 2.23 million at the time of this writing.

The palpable demand for Bitcoin via the spot BTC ETFs has helped the flagship coin outperform the wider altcoin market in the past year. Earlier this week, Bitwise CIO Matthew Sigel highlighted that BTC price will likely rally to $180k before the end of this year fueled notable cash inflows from institutional investors.