Goldman Sachs has significantly ramped up its Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETF) holdings, according to its latest 13F filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
The Wall Street giant now holds $1.57 billion across various Bitcoin ETFs, up 121.1% from the $710 million reported in Q3.
The bank’s largest exposure lies in BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), where it now holds 24.07 million shares worth $1.27 billion, a more than 88% jump in shares since its last filing.
For investors and market observers, Goldman’s expanded positions point to a robust shift in institutional investment towards Bitcoin (BTC) and, to a lesser extent, Ethereum (ETH).
The filing also reveals Goldman has added $288 million to Fidelity’s Wise Origin Bitcoin ETF (FBTC), marking a 105% increase from the previous quarter. Goldman now holds $3.6 million through Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust (GBTC).
Alongside its ETF holdings, the ninth-largest investment bank in the world has reported substantial options trading positions, with puts and calls totaling $760 million.
The bank holds a $527 million put position and an $84 million put through IBIT and FBTC, respectively, as well as a $157 million call position through IBIT.
Options allow Goldman to protect itself from potential losses by betting on price declines (puts) while also positioning itself to benefit if prices rise further (calls).
Despite its conviction in the two most prominent U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs, Goldman Sachs closed minor positions in others, including ARK 21Shares’ ARKB, Bitwise’s BITB, Grayscale’s mini Bitcoin trust, Invesco Galaxy’s BTCO, and WisdomTree’s BTCW.
Ethereum also saw a rise in Goldman’s portfolio, with the firm increasing its Ethereum exposure to $476.5 million, up from $25.1 million in the previous quarter — a nearly 19-fold increase.
The bank now holds $234.7 million in Ethereum through Fidelity’s FETH and $235.5 million through BlackRock’s ETHA, diversifying its crypto portfolio.
The boost in Bitcoin and Ethereum exposure is partly due to the surge in market prices, as Bitcoin saw a 40.6% rise, while Ethereum gained 26.2% from the start to the end of Q4, as per CoinGecko data.
Bitcoin, in particular, has experienced impressive gains, reaching a record high of $109,000 just before the U.S. Presidential inauguration.
The rally is partly driven by growing institutional interest, bolstered by favorable regulatory conditions following the election of President Donald Trump.
Despite Bitcoin’s dominance, Ethereum is still struggling to capture similar institutional interest.
Ethereum’s value relative to Bitcoin has fallen 13.8% in the past month, hitting a 4-year low, driven by technical issues and increasing institutional demand for Bitcoin.
Edited by Sebastian Sinclair
Daily Debrief Newsletter
Start every day with the top news stories right now, plus original features, a podcast, videos and more.
