Over $50 billion swept into U.S. Bitcoin spot ETFs: Asset management companies are the main subscribers, with several Hong Kong institutions making the list

Author: Nancy, PANews

Since the launch of Bitcoin spot ETFs, they have opened the floodgates for mainstream capital inflow, demonstrating strong capital attraction in a short period. Recently, with the release of the U.S. 13F (institutional holdings report), the positions of institutions participating in the "buying spree" of Bitcoin spot ETFs have also been revealed. So, how is the market development of Bitcoin spot ETFs? Which ETF products have the investment giants allocated, and what investment signals have they released?

Over $50 billion in funds flowing in, with the U.S. accounting for nearly 90% of the global share

Looking at the global market size of Bitcoin spot ETFs, the U.S. is undoubtedly the main force. According to data from HODL15Capital, as of May 7, U.S. Bitcoin spot ETFs have held 8,273,210 BTC, valued at approximately $5.21 billion, accounting for 89.5% of the global market.

However, in terms of the speed of capital growth, the inflow of funds into U.S. Bitcoin spot ETFs mainly occurred in the first two months after their launch, peaking at 836,000 BTC in mid-March this year, and then showing a slight month-on-month decline.

Among the 11 U.S. Bitcoin spot ETFs, the top three—Grayscale, BlackRock, and Fidelity—exhibit strong "capital attraction," collectively holding up to 719,000 BTC (valued at $26.91 billion), accounting for 86.9% of the total, which is more than 3.3 times that of "Bitcoin whale" MicroStrategy. In contrast, Franklin Templeton, WisdomTree, and Hashdex performed relatively weakly, accounting for only 8.8%.

From the perspective of asset size, only Grayscale and BlackRock have Bitcoin spot ETFs exceeding $10 billion. Grayscale has been in a continuous outflow state since converting GBTC to a spot ETF, only recently showing its first inflow, with the current BTC holdings at only 47% of what it was in January this year; BlackRock, on the other hand, has generally shown growth over the past few months, but the expansion rate has slowed down or even slightly declined since mid-April.

Additionally, as the first market in Asia to issue a spot Bitcoin ETF, as of May 7, three Hong Kong Bitcoin spot ETFs have collectively held 4,256 BTC, with an asset management scale of $27 million, which is only about 0.7% of the U.S. Bitcoin spot ETF's first-day listing. Moreover, there have been recent rumors that Hong Kong Bitcoin spot ETFs may be included in the Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect program, but the Hong Kong ETF issuers denied this, stating that it is purely a rumor, similar to previous speculation about southbound funds being able to purchase Hong Kong Bitcoin ETFs.

Asset management is the "main force" in subscriptions, with these three products becoming mainstream choices

The 13F report is considered an important channel for obtaining investment trends on Wall Street. According to U.S. SEC regulations, institutions managing over $100 million in equity assets must report their current holdings of U.S. equities within 45 days after the end of each quarter (three months) and provide information on the direction of funds. Based on existing market disclosures, many institutions have listed Bitcoin spot ETFs as investment targets. For example, Fintel data shows that IBIT has 207 institutional holders and shareholders, while GBTC has 402 institutional owners and shareholders.

Below, PANews summarizes some institutions that have purchased Bitcoin spot ETFs and found that asset management institutions have invested relatively more, with a richer variety of product choices, but their overall proportion in the investment portfolio is relatively small. Banks, on the other hand, have been more cautious in product selection and have limited capital investment. Among multiple Bitcoin spot ETFs, GBTC, IBIT, and FBTC are almost the mainstream trading varieties. Interestingly, three Hong Kong institutions have invested in U.S. Bitcoin spot ETFs, which may be related to factors such as fee differences and the backgrounds of asset custodians.

Susquehanna: $1.3 billion in GBTC, FBTC, ARKB, IBIT, and BITB, etc.

Quantitative trading firm Susquehanna International Group disclosed in its filings that it purchased $1.3 billion worth of spot Bitcoin ETFs, including 17.3 million shares of GBTC (valued at over $1.1 billion), 1.3 million shares of FBTC (valued at $83.7 million), 508,824 shares of ARKB (valued at $36.1 million), 583,049 shares of IBIT (valued at approximately $23.6 million), 560,832 shares of BITB (valued at $21.7 million), 256,354 shares of HODL (valued at $20.6 million), 255,814 shares of BTCW (valued at $19.3 million), 166,200 shares of BTCO (valued at $11.8 million), and 192,391 shares of BRRR (valued at $3.9 million). These combined investments account for only a small portion of the company's total investment of $575.9 billion.

Ovata Capital Management: Over $74 million in FBTC, GBTC, BITB, and IBIT

Hong Kong asset management company Ovata Capital Management submitted its latest filing to the U.S. SEC, showing that it has heavily invested in U.S. Bitcoin spot ETFs, including FBTC, GBTC, BITB, and IBIT, which account for 13.5%, 11.2%, 8.8%, and 5.6% of its portfolio, with a total value exceeding $74 million.

Hightower: Over $68 million in GBTC, FBTC, IBIT, ARKB, BITB, and EZBC

Asset management company Hightower, with a scale of $130 billion, disclosed in an SEC filing that it has purchased over $68.34 million worth of U.S. Bitcoin spot ETFs, including $44.84 million in Grayscale GBTC, $12.41 million in Fidelity FBTC, $7.62 million in IBIT, $1.7 million in ARKB, $990,000 in BITB, and $790,000 in EZBC. However, this portion of investment accounts for less than 0.1% of its total investment of $61.7 billion.

Yong Rong Asset Management: Approximately $38 million in IBIT

Hong Kong-based Yong Rong Asset Management has purchased approximately $38 million worth of IBIT, accounting for 12% of its portfolio, making it the largest holder of BlackRock's Bitcoin spot ETF. Yong Rong Asset Management, established in 2012, is a securities investment and asset management company with several funds and an asset management scale of hundreds of millions of dollars. In addition to Bitcoin spot ETFs, its latest investment portfolio also includes NVIDIA, Tesla, META, Pinduoduo, and Luckin Coffee.

United Capital Management: Over $34.9 million in FBTC and BITO

United Capital Management holds over 350,000 shares of FBTC and 410,000 shares of BITO, accounting for 4.9% and 3% of its latest investment portfolio, with a total value of approximately $34.91 million. United Capital Management is one of the major shareholders of Fidelity FBTC.

United Capital Management is a U.S.-based investment advisory firm that was sold by Goldman Sachs to one of the largest private investment advisory firms in the U.S., Creative Planning, with investment assets exceeding $436 million.

Legacy Wealth Asset Management: Over $28.5 million in FBTC and GBTC

Asset management company Legacy Wealth Asset Management owns over 350,000 shares of FBTC, accounting for 6.09% of its latest investment portfolio, and over 100,000 shares of GBTC, accounting for 1.84%, with a total value exceeding $28.5 million. Legacy Wealth Asset Management is also one of the major shareholders of Fidelity FBTC.

Monolith Management: Over $24 million in IBIT

Former Sequoia China partner Cao Xi's investment company Monolith Management revealed in a filing that it holds over $24 million in IBIT, ranking fifth in holdings of BlackRock ETFs, more than double its investment in Meta stock. Additionally, the company's two largest investments are in NVIDIA and Microsoft.

Monolith Management, based in Hong Kong, was co-founded by former Sequoia China partner Cao Xi and former Boyu Capital secondary market partner Tim Wang, with its first fund exceeding $500 million, primarily focusing on technology and innovation-driven sectors such as technology, software, life sciences, and consumer goods.

IvyRock Asset Management: $19 million in IBIT

IvyRock Asset Management is a hedge fund management company based in Hong Kong, which disclosed in its latest filing that it holds nearly $19 million in BlackRock's spot Bitcoin ETF IBIT.

Quattro Financial Advisors: Over $16.5 million in IBIT

Quattro Financial Advisors is a joint family office and the second-largest holder of BlackRock's Bitcoin spot ETF, holding 468,000 shares of IBIT, valued at approximately $16.5 million, accounting for 5.4% of its investment portfolio.

Oxler Private Wealth: Over $11.2 million in IBIT

Investment platform Oxler Private Wealth holds 280,000 shares of IBIT in its latest investment portfolio, valued at approximately $11.24 million, accounting for 4.4%.

Newbridge Financial Services Group: Approximately $1.34 million in GBTC

Newbridge Financial Services Group has an asset scale exceeding $340 million and holds about 20,000 shares of GBTC, valued at approximately $1.34 million, accounting for only 0.58% of its $230 million investment portfolio.

BNY Mellon: Approximately $1.11 million in GBTC

BNY Mellon, the oldest bank in the U.S., reported in its SEC filing that it holds 19,918 shares of IBIT and 7,108 shares of GBTC, currently valued at approximately $1.113 million.

SouthState Bank: Over $570,000 in GBTC and IBIT

SouthState Bank disclosed its investments in two spot Bitcoin ETFs in its U.S. SEC 13F filing, with a total value of $577,198, including 6,606 shares of GBTC (valued at approximately $417,301) and 3,951 shares of IBIT (valued at approximately $159,897). SouthState Bank's investment in spot Bitcoin ETFs accounts for only a small portion of the total $1.3 billion reported in its filing.

It is understood that SouthState Bank is a bank holding company based in the U.S., and after merging with CenterState Bank, the total assets managed by these two entities reach $34 billion.

BNP Paribas: Approximately $40,000 in IBIT

As the second-largest bank in Europe, BNP Paribas has a total asset management scale exceeding $600 billion. In its recent 13F filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, it disclosed its purchase of 1,030 shares of IBIT, valued at only about $40,000. BNP Paribas has been actively exploring the cryptocurrency field since last year, providing cryptocurrency services and participating in related investments, such as the tokenization company Fnality for traditional financial assets. Newbridge Financial Services Group has an asset scale exceeding $340 million and holds about 20,000 shares of GBTC, valued at approximately $1.34 million, accounting for only 0.58% of its $230 million investment portfolio.