CoinShares: Institutional Q1 Bitcoin ETF Holdings Decreased by 23% to Take Profits

Gate News bot message, a report released by CoinShares on June 5 indicates that institutional investors reduced their allocation of Bitcoin (BTC) in US spot ETFs in the first quarter due to declining hedging profits and compressed futures premiums.

The report assesses the 13-F filings of asset management companies with assets under management of at least $100 million. As of March 31, the Bitcoin ETF holdings reported by these investors amounted to $21.2 billion, down from $27.4 billion in the fourth quarter of last year.

A 23% pullback exceeds the 12% decline in the overall assets under management of the ETF market, while Bitcoin dropped 11% during this period.

CoinShares attributed most of the reductions to hedge funds. Due to the decreased attractiveness of basis trading, these companies reduced nearly 33% of their assets.

The trend of the advisors is the opposite. The value of positions denominated in USD has decreased, while the value of positions denominated in Bitcoin has increased, causing the assets held by the advisors to account for 50% of all declared assets.

At the same time, the holding ratio of hedge funds has dropped to 32%, while the holding ratio of brokerages is 10%. Advisors also dominate the total number of employees, accounting for 81% of the 755 fund managers who disclosed Bitcoin ETF.

Despite professional investors selling off, they still hold nearly 23% of Bitcoin ETF assets, slightly down from 26.3% in the previous quarter.

CoinShares attributed this decline to tactical rather than structural factors, noting that the average portfolio allocation is below 1%. The company expects that once regulatory guidance stabilizes, internal committees approve cryptocurrency authorizations, and the education gap narrows, large institutions will increase their holdings in cryptocurrencies.

Source: CryptoSlate