There were 1,573 institutions with long exposure to Bitcoin as of the end of 2024, according to findings from Bitcoin analyst and educator Sam Callahan.

The researcher took a deep dive into US Securities and Exchange Commission 13F filings, which are forms that large investment firms submit quarterly to disclose their holdings of stocks and equity-related assets.

The institutions included banks, hedge funds, registered investment advisors, family offices, endowments, pensions, sovereign wealth funds, and other asset managers, he noted.

I dug through the 13F filings and, by my count, there were 1,573 institutions with long exposure to Bitcoin in Q4 2024.

These include banks, hedge funds, RIAs, family offices, endowments, pensions, sovereign wealth funds, other asset managers.

Below are some major findings

Early Stage Institutional Interest

However, he noted that these 13F filings only contain a firm’s long positions in US equity-related assets. They exclude assets such as bonds, real estate, commodities, venture capital, futures, cash, and spot Bitcoin ETFs, so they only provide an “incomplete picture” of a firm’s total portfolio.

However, the median Bitcoin position across institutions was just 0.13%, indicating that adoption was still in very early stages.

Some notable firms with significant Bitcoin allocations include Horizon Kinetics, with $1.3 billion exposure or 16%, Bracebridge Capital has $334 million exposure or around 24%, Tudor Investment Corp as $436 million, 1.6% while Brevan Howard has 8.7%, equating to $1.4 billion in Bitcoin.

Large quant and market-making firms such as Millennium, Jane Street, and Citadel hold Bitcoin ETFs, but primarily for arbitrage, not for long-term investment, he noted.

Meanwhile, banks like JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs have small Bitcoin ETF holdings, mainly for market-making purposes, due to current regulatory restrictions.

Overall, Bitcoin is gaining traction as an institutional asset, but its adoption is still in its early stages. Only 19% of the 8,190 13F filings last quarter reported BTC exposure.

“Institutional investors managing trillions of dollars are still just dipping their toes in this market,” he said before concluding:

“As more enter the fray—or those already in increase their allocations—the inflows could drive Bitcoin to new heights and change its investor base forever.”

SEC Filings at ATH

On Feb. 19, Alphractal founder and CEO Joao Wedson observed that SEC filings mentioning the top two crypto assets are at record levels.

“A major movement in crypto is coming as SEC filings mentioning Bitcoin and Ethereum have hit an all-time high! Institutions are in the game, and things are heating up,”

The improved regulatory landscape in the United States under the new Donald Trump administration has been tipped to accelerate the adoption of Bitcoin and crypto as they go mainstream.

An interesting thing is brewing! A major movement in crypto is coming as SEC filings mentioning Bitcoin and Ethereum have hit an all-time high! Institutions are in the game and things are heating up.

Positive or negative?

We’ll find out soon!

The Final Countdown pic.twitter.com/qzQHSTxMTs

Meanwhile, retail is still showing weak hands, with markets remaining range-bound for most of this month.