A new study from Gemini and Glassnode reveals a major structural shift in Bitcoin’s ownership, highlighting the growing dominance of centralized treasuries and early adopters in the crypto space.
According to the report, centralized entities—ranging from governments and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) to public companies—now control 30.9% of Bitcoin’s circulating supply. This equates to 6.1 million BTC, valued at roughly $668 billion at today’s prices. The figure marks an astonishing 924% increase in institutional and custodial Bitcoin holdings over the past decade.
Researchers say the trend points to the “institutionalization” of Bitcoin, with the digital asset increasingly being viewed as a strategic store of value by large financial players. Over the same period, Bitcoin’s spot price has surged from below $1,000 to over $100,000, reinforcing the perception of BTC as a long-term investment rather than a speculative gamble.
However, the data also includes holdings by centralized exchanges—entities that custody assets on behalf of individual users. These platforms reportedly account for nearly half of the centralized Bitcoin holdings, raising questions about how much of the supply is institutionally owned versus that held in retail custody.
The report highlights the highly concentrated nature of institutional holdings. In many categories, including ETFs, DeFi protocols, and public companies, the top three holders control between 65% and 90% of the total. Analysts note this reflects the outsized influence early adopters still have in shaping the market’s structure.
Private company holdings, by contrast, appear more evenly spread, suggesting broader and more decentralized participation in this sector.
Sovereign treasuries also feature prominently in the report, with major Bitcoin reserves attributed to the United States, China, Germany, and the United Kingdom. Interestingly, most of these government holdings were not acquired through direct market activity but via law enforcement seizures. While these wallets typically remain inactive, their potential to move significant market volumes remains a latent force.
A separate report from Glassnode indicated that the recent decline in Bitcoin’s long-term holder (LTH) supply may be flashing early warning signs of a potential market top.
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