Goldman Sachs Discloses $419 Million In Spot Bitcoin ETF Holdings As Institutional Adoption Explodes

According to a regulatory filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Goldman Sachs has amassed roughly $419 million in exposure to Bitcoin via exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

The investment banking giant disclosed holding positions in seven out of the 11 U.S.-listed spot BTC ETFs on behalf of its clients. 

Goldman Sachs And Bitcoin ETF Exposure

Goldman Sachs said in a 13F form that it had bought 6.9 million shares of BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) ETF, worth $238.6 million. Fintel data shows that Goldman Sachs is currently the third-largest holder of IBIT, behind Millenium Management and London-based Capula Management.

Notably, Goldman Sachs is among the nine Wall Street giants backing IBIT. BlackRock named the bank as an authorized participant in April after reportedly engaging in talks to play the key role earlier in January.

In addition to IBIT, the bank also reported holding 1.51 million shares of Fidelity’s Bitcoin ETF, worth $79.5 million, 660,183 shares of the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust, worth $35 million, and $56.1 million worth of Invesco Galaxy’s BTC ETF. It also holds smaller positions in shares of other funds from Bitwise, WisdomTree, and ARK 21Shares.

Goldman’s Bitcoin position highlights a wider trend within the traditional finance industry, where the initial negative stance has noticeably shifted to cautious acceptance and integration of cryptocurrencies into mainstream financial products.​

Goldman Sachs previously indicated that its clients were not interested in digital assets.

“We do not think it is an investment asset class,” Sharmin Mossavar-Rahmani, chief investment officer of the bank’s Wealth Management unit, declared in April. “We’re not believers in crypto.”

Institutional Adoption Of Bitcoin ETFs On The Rise

Goldman’s disclosure comes as the institutional demand for Bitcoin ETFs has registered explosive growth this year.

ETF Store President Nate Geraci observed that BlackRock’s IBIT has drawn in around $20.5 billion in cumulative net inflows this year alone, leaving the next closest non-spot Bitcoin ETF launch in the dust. Among the 375 new ETFs that went live in 2024, the next closest non-spot Bitcoin ETF has only amassed $1.3 billion in inflows.

“Numbers are comical at this point,” Geraci stated in an Aug. 14 post on X.

BlackRock’s IBIT, Fidelity’s Bitcoin ETF, ARK 21Shares BTC ETF, and Bitwise Bitcoin ETF are the top four fund launches of this year.

Continued institutional adoption is essential for Bitcoin to register new lifetime highs. According to some industry experts, Bitcoin’s “ultimate price” could exceed $700,000 if the current adoption curve increases fourfold.