Bitcoin ETFs May Soon Surpass Satoshi Nakamoto

As a seasoned analyst with over two decades of experience in the financial industry, I have witnessed the rise and fall of numerous trends and market dynamics. However, none have been as captivating as the meteoric growth of Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in recent years.


The growth path of U.S.-based Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) has been nothing short of impressive. In January, these products received a green light from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and ever since, they have consistently bought Bitcoin on a regular basis.

Road to beating Satoshi Nakamoto

In a recent post on X, Bloomberg’s Senior ETF Analyst, Eric Balchunas, underscored the significant accomplishments made by the ETFs in question. This post specifically emphasized the impressive overall performance these investment products have shown since their introduction to the stock market for trading.

2024 saw unprecedented inflows into the U.S. Bitcoin ETF, totaling approximately $17.8 billion and amassing around 916,047 Bitcoins. This is roughly 84,000 Bitcoins shy of reaching the significant milestone of 1,000,000 Bitcoins accumulated so far this year.

It’s widely thought that the mysterious inventor of Bitcoin, known as Satoshi Nakamoto, owns approximately 1.1 million Bitcoins. With the current upward trend in Bitcoin Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs), they have amassed about 83% of Satoshi’s stash and are on track to potentially overtake it.

Should institutional investments continue to grow at their current pace, they might surpass Satoshi’s historic high and displace him as the leading figure in the market. This trend underscores the rising impact of these institutional offerings within the financial landscape.

Institutional titans lead Bitcoin-holding race

Currently, a ranking of the world’s leading Bitcoin holders reveals that Satoshi Nakamoto holds the most with approximately 673,783 Bitcoins. Binance is not far behind, holding about 673,783 coins as well. Other notable entities such as BlackRock, Fidelity, and Grayscale, which each offer Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF) products, hold 359,271 BTC, 287,153 BTC, and 254,677 BTC respectively.

Yesterday, US Bitcoin ETFs experienced a positive day, driving year-to-date inflows to an all-time high of $17.8 billion. Currently, they own approximately 92% of one million bitcoins and are 83% on their way to surpassing Satoshi as the largest holder. Time is ticking… (paraphrased version)

— Eric Balchunas (@EricBalchunas) September 25, 2024

As a crypto investor, I find it intriguing to note that the collective Bitcoin holdings of the three major asset managers amount to approximately 901,101 BTC. This leaves a total of 14,946 BTC with the remaining five asset managers who manage Bitcoin ETFs.

MicroStrategy, a business intelligence company under the leadership of Michael Saylor, currently holds the sixth-largest amount of Bitcoin with approximately 252,220 coins. With its aggressive acquisition approach, there’s a good chance that it might ascend to become one of the top five global Bitcoin holders in the near future.

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2024-09-25 18:45