Corporate whales: public firms holding at least 1,000 BTC grow 50% in 2025 – Fidelity

The cohort of publicly traded companies with holdings of at least 1,000 Bitcoin (BTC) has surged from 24 at the end of the first quarter to 35 as of July 25, representing a nearly 50% increase.

According to new figures released by Chris Kuiper, vice president of research at Fidelity Digital Assets, the growth pushes the group’s combined stash to almost 900,000 BTC, edging it toward the symbolic 1 million BTC mark.

The chart shows that after hitting a plateau in 2023, the number of heavyweight corporate holders began to accelerate late last year and has continued to rise. 

Distributed acquisitions

Kuiper argued that, in addition to the increase in companies, the pattern of buying also showed a significant change.

In the first quarter, companies acquired just under 100,000 Bitcoins. One firm dominated that flow, leaving other slices of the pie chart thin. 

By the second quarter, purchasing had climbed to more than 154,000 BTC, representing a 35% increase from the previous quarter. More importantly, the acquisitions were shared across a far broader set of treasuries. 

The second pie chart bristles with new slices, signalling that Bitcoin is no longer the preserve of a handful of balance‑sheet pioneers.

Rising demand

Aside from the Bitcoin acquisition by heavyweights, broad corporate adoption also increased this year.

In the first six months of 2025, public companies absorbed 245,510 BTC, more than double the 118,424 BTC created for spot exchange‑traded funds over the same stretch. 

That haul is a 375 % leap from the 51,653 BTC corporates picked up in the comparable 2024 period, while exchange-traded fund (ETF) demand plunged 56 % year‑over‑year after last year’s launch‑driven burst. 

Strategy still led the pack with 135,600 BTC, representing nearly 55% of the total, but its share has declined from 72%, indicating that buying has broadened beyond a single bellwether. 

Boards now purchase roughly 2.1 BTC for every ETF coin minted, framing Bitcoin less as a speculative punt and more as working capital or a reserve asset.

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