In the Last Three Months, Institutional Companies Bought Much More Bitcoin Than ETFs! What Does It Mean? Experts Explained

Institutional interest in Bitcoin is shifting. Public companies continue to adopt the strategy pioneered by MicroStrategy by purchasing more Bitcoin from exchange-traded funds for the third consecutive quarter.

According to Bitcoin Treasuries data, public companies increased their total assets by 18% by buying approximately 131,000 BTC in the second quarter of 2025, while ETFs acquired 111,000 BTC with an 8% growth during the same period.

According to Nick Marie, the research director of Ecoinometrics, the motivation for companies to acquire Bitcoin is quite different from that of ETF investors: "These companies are accumulating BTC with the aim of increasing shareholder value. They focus more on the amount of BTC in their reserves than on the price level."

Marie stated that publicly traded companies increased their Bitcoin holdings by 4% in April, while the increase in ETFs remained at 2% during the same period. During this time, the market had been volatile due to President Donald Trump's initial customs tariff announcements.

Although ETFs still hold a total of 1.4 million BTC and are the largest institutional Bitcoin investors, the amount held by public companies has reached 855,000 BTC, which is 6.8% of the maximum supply.

This trend coincides with the regulatory easing seen during the Trump administration towards the cryptocurrency sector. A presidential decree signed in March announced that the US would establish an official Bitcoin reserve. ETFs had made more BTC purchases from public companies in the third quarter of 2024, meaning before Trump's re-election.

Some significant corporate moves also drew attention in the second quarter: GameStop began purchasing Bitcoin as a reserve asset with the approval of its board of directors. Health technology company KindlyMD merged with Bitcoin investment company Nakamoto. Famous investor Anthony Pompliano's company ProCap initiated its own BTC purchase program while entering the process of going public through special purpose acquisition company (SPAC).

The pioneer of this trend and currently the largest representative, Strategy (, formerly known as MicroStrategy), is in a leading position with 597,000 BTC. It is followed by the Bitcoin mining company Mara Holdings with approximately 50,000 BTC. Ben Werkman, the investment director of Swan Bitcoin, states that the scale of Strategy will not be easily matched: "Thanks to its high liquidity, it will continue to be an attractive destination for institutional capital."

In contrast, Werkman states that smaller companies offer high return potential for individual investors and small-scale funds. These companies, thanks to their access to public capital markets, have the capacity to accumulate Bitcoin on a scale that individual investors cannot achieve.

Nick Marie thinks that this trend may not be long-lasting: "In 10 years, the number of companies relying on this strategy may have decreased. As the category expands, the impact of individual companies becomes diluted. Furthermore, by that time, BTC may have completely normalized."

Investor interest remains strong. According to Werkman, these companies offer attractive leveraged investment instruments for investors who already believe in Bitcoin. "These companies provide not only Bitcoin but also a value increase backed by operating income, secured by Bitcoin. This makes them unique," he says.

*This is not investment advice.

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