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Brevan Howard, Goldman Sachs and Harvard Lead Billions in Bitcoin ETF Buying Spree

by admin August 17, 2025

Wall Street ramped up its exposure to bitcoin in the second quarter, adding positions not only in spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) but also in U.S. stocks closely tied to the cryptocurrency’s price, according to new filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Brevan Howard nearly doubled its position in BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) during the second quarter, according to a securities filing. The macro-focused hedge fund held 37.9 million shares at the end of June, up from about 21.5 million in March.

The stake was worth more than $2.6 billion based on IBIT’s closing price on June 28, making Brevan Howard one of the largest reported institutional holders of IBIT alongside Goldman Sachs, which boosted its position to $3.3 billion in IBIT and Fidelity’s Wise Origin Bitcoin Trust (FBTC). The banking giant also held $489 million worth of the iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHA), according to a filing.

Goldman’s ownership of the ETFs isn’t necessarily a direct wager by its trading desk on bitcoin’s price; rather, it more likely represents positions held by Goldman Sachs Asset Management on behalf of its clients.

Brevan Howard, best known for macro trading, however, has long been active in the crypto space and operates a dedicated digital asset division called BH Digital. The unit manages billions in assets and invests in blockchain infrastructure, decentralized finance and related technologies.

Harvard, Wells Fargo and more

Other major IBIT investors include Harvard University, which reported a $1.9 billion stake in the ETF, and Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Investment Company, which continues to hold $681 million.

In terms of U.S. banks, Wells Fargo nearly quadrupled its holdings of IBIT to $160 million, up from $26 million in the previous quarter, while maintaining a $200,000 stake in the Grayscale Bitcoin Fund (GBTC).

Cantor Fitzgerald also boosted its holdings to over $250 million while also increasing stakes in crypto-related stocks, including Strategy (MSTR), Coinbase (COIN) and Robinhood (HOOD), among others.

Trading firm Jane Street revealed holding a $1.46 billion stake in IBIT, which represents the largest single position in its portfolio after Tesla (TSLA) at $1.41 billion. It increased its stake in MSTR while reducing its holdings of FBTC.

Spot bitcoin ETFs like IBIT, which launched in January, allow investors to gain exposure to bitcoin’s price without directly holding the cryptocurrency. That structure offers traditional institutions an avenue to participate in the crypto market through familiar brokerage accounts and custodial arrangements.

Norway buys more

For some overseas entities, gaining exposure to bitcoin is easier through U.S.-listed companies that hold large amounts of BTC on their balance sheets.

That’s the approach being taken by Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, along with several other European state-backed investors, which are opting for equity stakes in crypto-adjacent firms rather than holding the crypto directly.

Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM), the investment arm of the Norwegian central bank and the entity that manages the country’s $2 trillion pension fund, now indirectly holds 7,161 BTC, according to a new note from K33 Research. That figure is up 192% from 2,446 BTC a year ago, and up 87% from the 3,821 BTC it held at the end of 2024.

(Source: NBIM, K33 Research via X)

The largest portion of its exposure — 3,005 BTC — comes through shares in Strategy. The rest is spread across companies like Marathon Digital, Coinbase, Block, and Metaplanet. K33 also counted GME (GameStop) and several smaller holdings as contributing to the total.

Still, the exposure remains tiny in context. Norway’s fund owns stakes in thousands of companies across global markets, and the value of its bitcoin-linked investments is a fraction of its total holdings. At a current market price of $117,502 per BTC, the fund’s 7,161 BTC is worth around $841 million — or less than 0.05% of the $2 trillion portfolio.

The sharp increase over the past year may signal growing institutional comfort with the asset class, but it doesn’t represent a major strategic shift—yet.

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August 17, 2025 0 comments

Can Monero’s XMR price surge 40% and revisit all-time high?

Crypto Trends

Kraken freezes Monero deposits, Qubic grabs 51% hashrate

by admin August 17, 2025

Kraken suspended Monero deposits after detecting that a single mining pool gained majority control of the network’s hashrate.

The exchange cited security concerns following what appears to be a successful 51% attack on the privacy-focused blockchain.

“As a security precaution, we have paused Monero (XMR) deposits after detecting that a single mining pool has gained more than 50% of the network’s total hashing power,” Kraken announced Friday.

The exchange added that the concentration of mining power poses a potential risk to the network’s integrity.

Source: Kraken announcement

Qubic, an AI-focused blockchain and mining pool, claimed it achieved 51% hashrate dominance over Monero following a month-long technical confrontation.

“After a month-long, high-stakes technical confrontation, Qubic reached 51% of Monero’s hashrate dominance, successfully reorganizing the blockchain,” Qubic representatives announced Tuesday.

Pool survives denial of service counterattack

While Monero community members initially denied the attack claims, mining pool statistics now confirm Qubic as the dominant Monero miner.

Qubic faced resistance during its takeover attempt, briefly falling to seventh place among Monero miners. On August 4, the pool suffered a denial-of-service (DDoS) attack, which significantly reduced its computational power.

The DDoS attack dropped Qubic’s hashrate from 2.6 gigahashes per second to just 0.8 GH/s, according to Sergey Ivancheglo, who claimed responsibility for the 51% attack. Denial-of-service attacks flood networks with fake traffic, disrupting legitimate operations.

Despite the counterattack, Qubic recovered its hashing power and accumulated enough computational resources to control majority network operations. Current mining statistics confirm Qubic’s position as the top Monero mining pool.

Kraken’s deposit suspension aims to prevent potential losses from double-spending attacks while the network remains compromised.

Other exchanges may implement similar measures until normal mining distribution resumes.

A 51% attack allows attackers to spend the same coins multiple times by reversing confirmed transactions. Exchanges become primary targets in such attacks since they handle large transaction volumes and hold significant cryptocurrency reserves.

The Monero network’s proof-of-work consensus mechanism requires majority hashrate control to validate transactions. Qubic’s dominance theoretically gives it the power to reorganize blocks and censor transactions on the network.

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August 17, 2025 0 comments

Terence Stamp during 2005 Cannes Film Festival - Terence Stamp Portraits at Orange Beach in Cannes, France.

Gaming Gear

Actor Terence Stamp, who played General Zod in Superman and Mankar Camoran in The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion, has died

by admin August 17, 2025

As reported by the BBC, the family of Terence Stamp has confirmed that the actor died on Sunday morning at the age of 87. In Stamp’s long and illustrious career, the actor had some notable videogame performances, including the Prophet of Truth in Halo, and Mankar Camoran in The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion.

Stamp was born to a working class London family in 1938, and first rose to popularity in the 1960s, once even being considered to replace Sean Connery as James Bond. Stamp is perhaps best known today for the second act of his career, where he made a mark as a versatile character actor. Stamp played General Zod opposite Christopher Reeve in the first two Superman movies in 1978 and 1980.

The Making of Oblivion (FULL | HQ | ENG) – YouTube

Watch On

Stamp had a small number of videogame appearances in his career, most notably in Halo 3 and The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion. Stamp was one of a number of famous actors who lent their voices to Oblivion, including Sir Patrick Stewart, Sean Bean, and Lynda Carter. Stamp’s performance as Mankar Camoran can once again be heard in Virtuous’ remaster of Oblivion, as well as the upcoming Skyblivion mod remake.

In the documentary, The Making of Oblivion, Stamp can be seen working in the booth, delivering some of his lines as Camoran and receiving direction from longtime Elder Scrolls lead, Todd Howard. Though Stamp says in the documentary that he had only gotten the FedEx of the script the night before recording and that he was less familiar with this “area of performance,” his delivery of Camoran remains a highlight of the game.

“Superman 1 and 2, kinda my formative years, when I was six or seven. Terence Stamp is General Zod, and he has a great line in Superman 2, where he gets Superman to kneel,” Howard explained in the documentary. “‘Son of Jor-El, kneel before Zod!’ And my brother would always do that but change ‘Zod’ to ‘Todd.’ Just over the years, one of those things.”

Naturally, in-between recording Cameron’s commanding and esoteric monologues to the Mythic Dawn cult, Stamp graciously delivered a menacing “Kneel before Todd!” For Howard and his brother.

Stamp was reportedly in talks to reprise his role as transgender drag queen Bernadette Bassenger in a distant sequel to the 1994 film, The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. According to IMDB, his final role will remain an appearance in Edgar Wright’s 2021 film, Last Night in Soho.

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August 17, 2025 0 comments

Esports

Zack Wheeler on IL with blood clot: What it means, what to expect

by admin August 17, 2025

Stephania BellAug 17, 2025, 05:00 PM ET
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The Philadelphia Phillies placed Zack Wheeler on the 15-day IL on Saturday due to a blood clot in his right arm. Specifically, president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said Wheeler was diagnosed with a “right upper extremity blood clot,” and few other details were offered. Wheeler had pitched Friday and was limited to five innings, later reporting what Phillies head athletic trainer Paul Buchheit referred to as “heaviness.” Heaviness is a description patients will sometimes use when describing circulatory compromise which could occur as the result of a clot.

Blood clots in athletes may be due to a number of factors. They can occur as the result of direct trauma, resulting in bleeding or swelling that can contribute to clot formation. They can follow a period of immobilization (for instance, post-surgery when a limb is immobilized for a period of time, there can be an increased risk of clot formation). Genetic clotting disorders can be an origin source but that would be rare in an elite athlete. The most likely cause of clot formation in an elite athlete however, particularly in the upper extremity of an athlete who repeatedly subjects the arm to overhead stress, is thoracic outlet syndrome.

Thoracic outlet syndrome occurs when the first rib, or occasionally an extra rib, creates compression over the blood vessels and/or nerves as they exit the neck region under the clavicle (collarbone) and travel through the shoulder to the arm and hand. Overhead athletes — most notably baseball pitchers along with softball players, volleyball players, rowers and swimmers — are most susceptible to clots in the shoulder area due to thoracic outlet syndrome.

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Phillies ace Wheeler on 15-day IL with blood clot

Treatment for a clot in an elite athlete depends on the root cause. According to Dr. Jason Lee, chief of vascular surgery at Stanford Health Care, who treats high performance athletes with these conditions (he is not involved in Wheeler’s case), treatment can include any combination of blood thinners (for a time period ranging from one to six months) thrombolysis (a catheter-based procedure to dissolve a clot) and, in the presence of rib compression, a potential rib resection to prevent future episodes. With appropriate treatment, athletes have a very high likelihood of returning to their pre-injury level of performance.

In those cases where surgery is required, the results have been largely successful in allowing throwers to continue their careers. Examples include New York Mets ace Matt Harvey who underwent thoracic outlet surgery in 2016 and returned in 2017. Harvey struggled with other injuries but pitched until 2021, something he might not have been able to do without treatment.

In 2013, Texas Rangers president of baseball operations Chris Young, then a pitcher with the Washington Nationals, underwent thoracic outlet surgery. He signed with the Mariners the following spring and received the American League Comeback Player of the Year award after pitching 165 innings in the 2014 season.

It should be noted that both Harvey and Young underwent surgery for neurogenic thoracic outlet syndrome (the nerve compression type which is more common).

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In 2012, Mets pitcher Dillon Gee had a slightly different presentation. Gee had blood clots — one in his lung that was addressed medically and one in an artery in his shoulder that was addressed with thrombolysis and he subsequently underwent surgery to repair the damaged artery.

A study published in the Orthopedic Journal of Sports Medicine in 2022 looked specifically at the return rate and performance metrics of 26 MLB pitchers who had undergone rib resection to treat thoracic outlet syndrome. Within the study group, 81 percent returned to play during the study period. Perhaps more importantly, the surgical group showed no difference in post-operative career length or performance when compared to controls.

The Phillies have indicated that Wheeler will undergo further evaluation upon returning to Philadelphia. For the time being, the timeline is uncertain but given the seriousness of the issue, there will be no rushing him back.

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August 17, 2025 0 comments

GameFi Guides

Ethereum Whale Activity Surges: $280M Purchased In 24 Hours

by admin August 17, 2025

Trusted Editorial content, reviewed by leading industry experts and seasoned editors. Ad Disclosure

Ethereum has entered the spotlight once again after reaching a multi-year high above $4,790, only to retrace toward critical demand levels. The move highlights ongoing volatility as bulls remain patient, waiting for a breakout beyond the $4,900 level, a threshold that would push ETH into uncharted price territory. While the retracement may seem like a pause, market structure still favors strength, with higher lows forming and momentum shifting toward accumulation.

What makes the current setup even more compelling is the surge in whale activity. Arkham Intelligence data revealed that three new whale addresses collectively purchased $279.5 million worth of ETH in just the past 24 hours. These transactions underscore confidence from deep-pocketed players at a moment when Ethereum is consolidating below key resistance. Such large-scale accumulation typically signals expectations of further upside, aligning with growing optimism that ETH could soon break above its historic ceiling.

With supply on exchanges continuing to decline and institutional demand rising, Ethereum’s next move carries weight for the broader altcoin market. Traders and investors alike will be watching closely, as the convergence of whale accumulation and technical resilience suggests that Ethereum could be on the verge of another explosive phase.

Ethereum Whale Accumulation Deepens As Bitmine Expands Holdings

Ethereum’s bullish narrative continues to strengthen as whale activity accelerates. Arkham’s AI has linked the latest wave of ETH purchases to Bitmine, raising questions about whether strategist Tom Lee is doubling down on Ethereum exposure. Bitmine’s total ETH holdings are a staggering 1.174 million ETH, valued at around $5.26 billion at current prices.

Ethereum Whale Accumulation | Source: Arkham Intelligence

This scale of accumulation places Bitmine among the most influential players in the Ethereum ecosystem, with its wallet activity now drawing comparisons to major institutional participants. The timing of these buys is especially significant, arriving as ETH consolidates just below the $4,900 mark, with bulls watching closely for a breakout into uncharted price territory.

What’s more, this accumulation trend aligns with moves from companies like Sharplink Gaming, which have also been positioning aggressively into Ethereum. The shift highlights a broader pattern: institutional actors are increasingly viewing ETH as a long-term strategic asset, not just a speculative play.

Adding further fuel to the bullish outlook, exchange supply is drying up while OTC desks report running out of Ethereum. This supply squeeze is historically a precursor to major rallies, as demand from whales and institutions collides with reduced availability. If these dynamics persist, Ethereum may be entering one of its most explosive phases yet, with whale behavior acting as the clearest signal of confidence.

ETH Holds $4,400 After Sharp Decline

Ethereum’s 4-hour chart highlights a healthy pullback from the recent peak near $4,790, with the price now consolidating around $4,414. This decline comes after a strong multi-week rally, suggesting that the move is more of a cooldown phase rather than a full trend reversal.

ETH testing key demand level | Source: ETHUSDT chart on TradingView

The 50-period SMA at $4,407 is now acting as immediate support, making this level a critical short-term battleground. If bulls can defend it, momentum could quickly shift back toward the $4,600–$4,800 resistance area, where ETH was recently rejected. A confirmed breakout above $4,900 would validate bullish strength and set the stage for fresh all-time highs.

On the downside, the 100-SMA ($4,025) and 200-SMA ($3,822) remain deeper support zones that could absorb stronger selling pressure if the $4,400 area fails. Importantly, trading volume shows heavy activity during the rally followed by lower participation during the retrace, implying sellers are not in full control.

Overall, Ethereum remains in an uptrend, but the current consolidation will determine its next leg. Holding above $4,400 keeps bulls in control, while a drop below could trigger a short-term correction before the uptrend resumes. This makes the coming sessions pivotal for ETH’s trajectory.

Featured image from Dall-E, chart from TradingView

Editorial Process for bitcoinist is centered on delivering thoroughly researched, accurate, and unbiased content. We uphold strict sourcing standards, and each page undergoes diligent review by our team of top technology experts and seasoned editors. This process ensures the integrity, relevance, and value of our content for our readers.

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August 17, 2025 0 comments

Game Updates

“Multiple” future Hardspace projects are coming, as Hardspace: Shipbreaker devs Blackbird Interactive take full ownership

by admin August 17, 2025

Floating amid the scrap belts of space, some news. Hardspace: Shipbreaker is now owned by developers Blackbird Interactive, with the studio having bought control of the ship-stripping sim from publishers Saber Interactive. They’re not having a rest after cracking open that bubbly either, writing that “multiple Hardspace projects” are in development.

Blackbird revealed all of this via a Steam post, writing that they’ve “reached an agreement with Focus Entertainment, our publishing partner, to reacquire full ownership of the Hardspace: Shipbreaker intellectual property”. So, as you might expect, doing plenty of Hardspacey things is going to be a big part of the studio’s plans going forwards.

To that end, they revealed here that “multiple Hardspace projects are already in development”. “We’re not ready to share any specifics yet, but rest assured we have paid close attention to your feedback and are laser-focused on ensuring this next generation of Hardspace expands on the original game in all the right ways,” Blackbird added.

In the run up to releasing these new games, the studio aim to “grow the Hardspace community”, urging folks to join the series’ Discord server, where breaking updates will be launched into your orbit whenever they’re ready. You can also pre-register for the “LYNX Pioneer Program” via Blackbird’s website, if you fancy the chance to take part in early playtests and offer feedback on future Hardspace games. There’s some other community stuff like contests and the chance to generally chat with devs included in that too.

Also, Hardspace: Shipbreaker itself will be getting a “small update” that’ll mainly take care of housekeeping details to indicate the change in ownership, like revamping the privacy policies and splash screens.

Our Liam wrote the following about the game in his review:

What a thrill, to exist on the sidelines. To look longingly out towards the stars and wonder what’s going on beyond your little corner of this expansive universe. To understand a society purely through its waste products. Hardspace: Shipbreaker is a truly marvellous thing to spend time within. I quite like being a background character, it turns out. Being the hero is overrated. If Shipbreaker has taught me anything it’s that the satisfaction of a hard day’s work beats saving the universe every single time.

There are also thoughts on it from Alice O and Alice B, if you’re keen to fill your Alice quota.

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August 17, 2025 0 comments

Product Reviews

Cars have had real-life DLC for a while, but now Volkswagen’s gone full pay to win, locking a car’s max horsepower behind a subscription

by admin August 17, 2025

Some of the execs at Volkswagen must like Gacha games⁠—so much so that, as reported by Auto Express, you now have to “subscribe” to get your car’s full horsepower output with one of its new models.

VW’s proposition is this: buy a new ID.3—the brand’s “entry level” (I remember when that used to mean <£20,000, not over £30k) electric hatchback—in some of the mid-level trims, and you get a somewhat piddling 201 horsepower. But if you’re feeling frisky, you can tack on a £16.50/mo subscription, or a one-time £649 fee, to break the paywall and unleash an extra 27hp. Sound familiar? Even to a novice gamer, this business model is probably old hat.

I’m no stranger to aftermarket car modifications “unlocking” more power. There’s more of a special DIY feeling there, like overclocking your RTX 5080 or modding Skyrim to make elderly people graphically coherent. But when features of your car are built in, and then the marque upcharges you to access them? That’s where you lose me.

Back in my day, you bought Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2 for the Nintendo GameCube, and that was it. You got the full game. But over the last two decades, as triple-A publishers learned to master the art of consumer exploitation via DLC and subscription models, buying a game these days can feel like buying a work in progress. Trust me, I play Paradox grand strategy games.

Auto manufacturers, a notoriously conservative bunch, were much slower to adopt this particular technique of wringing their buyers dry. But subscription features did start slowly creeping in in the late 2010s, as cars became integral parts of the “internet of things,” or the increasing number of formerly analogue objects and appliances that now have internet connectivity for some reason.

BMW gained particular infamy for locking Apple CarPlay and heated seats (seriously, you can’t make this up) behind a paywall. Luckily, consumers reacted so poorly that the company reversed course on both. But as any survival game expert will tell you, the horde of zombies outside your shelter don’t go away just because they failed to break down your door the first time.

I play 98% of my PC games on Steam—including some pretty darn old releases. But recently I’ve been wondering, what happens if/when Valve goes under, or computer hardware advances to a point where my previous purchases are no longer compatible, or my library loses support in some other way? I bought my games on Steam, but do I really own them? When cars debut in early access, with paywall-locked features and live-service models, what happens when your trusty jalopy bricks while driving down the road? Oh wait; we already know.

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August 17, 2025 0 comments

NFT Gaming

Ripple Chosen by Gemini for Credit Line Ahead of IPO

by admin August 17, 2025

According to Gemini’s S-1 filing, one of the leading US exchanges has entered into a credit agreement with enterprise blockchain company Ripple Labs.

The agreement makes it possible for Gemini to draw funds from Ripple via a credit facility.

Gemini’s borrowings will bear interest of up to 8.5% per year.

$75 million borrowing cap

The aforementioned S-1 filing shows that Gemini is already using the credit line for liquidity purposes.

RLUSD as borrowing option

Within the initial $75 million cap, Gemini can only borrow directly in the US dollar.

However, if Gemini decides to take out additional loans, it might borrow these funds in the Ripple USD (RLUSD) token, the red-hot stablecoin that was launched by the company in December.

Hence, the deal could potentially be used for enhancing the token’s adoption.

Gemini’s IPO

As reported by U.Today, Gemini confidentially filed to go public in June, joining a slew of other companies.

The company’s S-1 filing, which was unveiled on Friday, shows that the company suffered heavy losses in the first half of 2025. The company’s cash reserves stood at roughly $162 millin as of mid-2025, with its liabilities surpassing $2 billion.

Meanwhile, Ripple recently clarified that it had no IPO plans in the near future despite being one of the biggest private companies.

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August 17, 2025 0 comments

Crypto Trends

LINK Is Up 18% Today; Here Are the Catalysts and What Analysts Are Saying

by admin August 17, 2025

Chainlink’s LINK token jumped 18% to $26.05 on Sunday, according to CoinDesk Data, pacing the top 50 cryptocurrencies by percentage gain as analysts and traders cited momentum and recent fundamental catalysts.

What Analysts Are Saying

Altcoin Sherpa described LINK as “one of the best coins right now,” pointing to chart strength that could carry toward $30. He explained that round-number levels like $30 often act as psychological barriers where sellers take profits, so traders should be cautious about chasing the move too late.

Zach Humphries, another analyst, argued that LINK remains “very undervalued” at current prices. He emphasized that Chainlink underpins much of decentralized finance by delivering the price feeds and cross-chain services many protocols rely on. From his perspective, the token should be treated as a bet on critical infrastructure rather than just another speculative asset.

Milk Road highlighted the strong trading backdrop. The publication noted a 66% surge in 24-hour trading volume and said LINK’s clean breakout above $24.50 added conviction for momentum traders. They tied the bullish tone back to two key August developments: the launch of Chainlink’s new onchain reserve and its data partnership with Intercontinental Exchange (ICE).

Chainlink Reserve

On Aug. 7, Chainlink introduced the Chainlink Reserve, a smart contract treasury designed to steadily accumulate LINK over time. The mechanism works by converting the project’s revenue — paid in stablecoins, gas tokens, or fiat — into LINK and then locking those tokens onchain for multiple years.

The conversion process, called Payment Abstraction, automates this workflow. It uses Chainlink’s own services — price feeds for fair conversion rates, automation to trigger transactions, and CCIP to consolidate fees from different chains — before swapping into LINK via decentralized exchanges.

Chainlink says the Reserve has already accumulated more than $1 million worth of LINK, with no withdrawals planned for several years. It also earmarks 50% of fees from staking-secured services such as Smart Value Recapture to feed the Reserve, creating a recurring stream of inflows.

The initiative serves two strategic purposes.

First, it strengthens the link between adoption and token demand by ensuring usage revenues convert directly into LINK.

Second, it provides transparency: anyone can view inflows, balances, and the timelock at reserve.chain.link.

Chainlink has framed the Reserve as one piece of a broader economic design that includes user-fee growth and cost reductions via the Chainlink Runtime Environment. For investors, the practical takeaway is that network growth can now translate into steady, programmatic accumulation of LINK on the open market.

Chainlink’s dashboard shows the reserve now holds about 109,663 LINK tokens, with a market value of roughly $2.8 million. The data also highlights that the average cost basis of these holdings is $19.65 per token, underscoring the program’s early accumulation strategy.

ICE Partnership

On Aug. 11, Chainlink announced a partnership with Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), the operator of the New York Stock Exchange. The collaboration integrates ICE’s Consolidated Feed, which provides foreign-exchange and precious-metals rates from more than 300 venues, into Chainlink Data Streams.

ICE is one of several blue-chip contributors to these datasets, which are aggregated by Chainlink to create fast, tamper-resistant data feeds for use onchain. By incorporating ICE’s market coverage, Chainlink aims to make its feeds more attractive for banks, asset managers, and developers building tokenized assets or automated settlement systems.

Chainlink Labs described the integration as a watershed moment for institutional adoption. The thinking is that traditional finance players need proven, high-quality data to interact with blockchain applications, and bringing ICE’s feeds onchain helps meet that standard.

The partnership marked one of the clearest examples yet of a major Wall Street market data provider engaging with blockchain infrastructure. By giving decentralized applications direct access to ICE’s financial data, it positioned Chainlink as a bridge between traditional markets and decentralized finance.

Looking Ahead

Analysts highlight LINK’s strong trend, undervaluation and accelerating momentum, suggesting the token is in a position of strength as investors digest Chainlink’s recent strategic moves.

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August 17, 2025 0 comments

GameFi Guides

The 7 Largest Publicly Traded Ethereum Treasury Firms

by admin August 17, 2025

In brief

Publicly traded companies are now racing to accumulate Ethereum.
Firms with strategic ETH reserves now account for more than 3% of the entire ETH supply.
The top holders include BitMine Immersion Technologies, SharpLink Gaming, and Coinbase.

The trend of publicly traded companies adopting crypto treasury strategies may have started with Bitcoin, but it has since expanded to a wide variety of digital assets—including the second-largest crypto asset by market cap, Ethereum.

Now the race to accumulate ETH is on, led by key figures like Fundstrat’s Tom Lee and Ethereum co-founder Joe Lubin, who are championing public firms as they rally around Ethereum and its future.

Per StrategicETHReserve.xyz, public entities with Ethereum treasuries maintain more than 3.7 million ETH valued at nearly $17 billion, as of this writing, and more than 3% of the entire supply. These are the biggest holders as of this writing.

1. BitMine Immersion Technologies

Led by crypto bull and Fundstrat CIO Tom Lee, BitMine Immersion Technologies burst onto the scene at the end of July when the firm detailed plans for an Ethereum treasury.

Formerly focused on Bitcoin mining, BitMine (BMNR) first secured a $250 million private investment in public equity (PIPE) fundraising round to begin its ETH purchases.

Since that time, it hasn’t looked back, acquiring 1,150,263 ETH or more than $5 billion worth as of this writing.

The aggressive buying spree has coincided with Lee’s seemingly unfathomable ETH price predictions, which include calls for $60,000 ETH. That’s a sizable multiple of the current price.

After planning a raise of $4.5 billion to accumulate the asset, Lee and company upsized their offering by $20 billion in August as BitMine aims to expand its already industry-leading Ethereum treasury.

2. SharpLink Gaming

Gambling marketer turned Ethereum treasury company SharpLink Gaming holds the second-largest publicly traded ETH treasury.

The firm maintains 728,804 ETH, or $3.2 billion as of its latest release—around 73% of the way to its first stated goal of accumulating 1 million ETH.

While SharpLink’s existing business did not have immediate ties to crypto, it brought on direct ties to Ethereum when it shaped its board of directors. The firm’s chairman Joe Lubin is the co-founder of Ethereum itself, and founder and CEO of Ethereum software company, Consensys, the maker of popular crypto wallet, MetaMask.

(Disclaimer: Consensys is one of 22 investors in an editorially independent Decrypt)

Lubin and company have followed BitMine in a relentless pursuit of Ethereum, raising funds in a variety of ways including a recent $400 million direct offering, plus plans to collect up to $6 billion via stock sales.

In July, the firm added BlackRock’s former head of digital asset strategy Joseph Chalom as its newly appointed CEO.

3. The Ether Machine

There’s no questioning the business of The Ether Machine, a firm made public via a merger of The Ether Reserve, LLC and a blank-check company earlier this year.

The third-largest treasury on the list, The Ether Machine currently holds 345,362 ETH, or $1.5 billion at today’s ETH prices.

Funded with startup capital and approximately 170,000 ETH from co-founder and chairman Andrew Keys, the Ether Machine stated a mandate to put its ETH to work on-chain or create a “machine” to grow its stash, differentiating it from more passive accumulation vehicles.

It most recently acquired around $40 million worth of ETH using cash from a previously established private placement. At the time of inception, it expected to pull in around $1.6 billion in total proceeds to use to fund Ethereum purchases.

4. Coinbase

Leading American crypto exchange Coinbase maintains an investment of around $602 million or 136,782 ETH, according to its most recent 10-Q filing. That is more than 20,000 ETH greater than it ended 2024 with when it held 115,700 ETH based on an end of year 10-K filing.

The firm also holds more than 11,000 Bitcoin as an investment, placing it among the top publicly traded holders of the largest crypto asset, as well.

First hitting the public markets in 2021, shares in Coinbase made a new all-time high in July 2025 as crypto firms continued a streak of success alongside traditional equities.

5. Bit Digital

Bitcoin miner Bit Digital formed an Ethereum treasury strategy during Q2 2025. In just a few short months, it’s quickly added to its stash, jumping from 30,663 ETH at the end of June to 121,076 ETH as of August 11—now valued at more than $530 million.

As part of its transition, the firm is ending its Bitcoin mining operations and redeploying funds towards ETH accumulation. Public markets didn’t react strongly to the strategy shift, as shares of BTBT have gained just 2.63% year-to-date.

6. ETHZilla

Biotech firm 180 Life Sciences rebranded its company to “ETHZilla,” as it shifted focus to a digital assets treasury centered on Ethereum.

The firm raised $425 million in late July to kickstart its treasury and quickly jumped up the holder rankings, acquiring 82,186 ETH as of August 12, valued around $362 million at today’s ETH prices.

A few weeks later, shares in ETHZilla (ATNF) quickly tripled after it was revealed that billionaire tech investor Peter Thiel and related entities had purchased a 7.5% stake in the company.

As for its unique name? Chairman of the board McAndrew Rudisil told Decrypt in July that it “comes from our focus to be one of the largest holders of ETH in the world.”

7. BTCS Inc.

Blockchain Technology Consensus Solutions (BTCS) holds 70,140 ETH, worth around $309 million as of mid-August.

The firm boasts a proactive strategy to acquire more Ethereum, putting its ETH to work on-chain using what is described as a “powerful DeFi/TradFi financial model” to generate value for shareholders.

In addition to acquiring ETH, the firm also bolstered its treasury with three Ethereum-based Pudgy Penguins NFTs in August.

BTCS posted record revenues in Q2 of $2.77 million, marking a 394% increase year-over-year. Shares are up nearly 90% year-to-date.

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August 17, 2025 0 comments