Bitwise report: institutions held crypto through a 50% market decline
No institutions sold as crypto fell about 50%, Bitwise says
Asset manager Bitwise says none of the 15 institutions it interviewed reduced their crypto holdings during a market decline of roughly 50%. Several of them bought more instead.
The findings come from Bitwise's Institutional Crypto Adoption Report, which is based on interviews carried out in late March and April, during a market decline that began in October 2025.
Key numbers from the interviews
- 15 institutions were interviewed.
- None cut their crypto allocations during the drawdown, and several added to their positions.
- Among institutions with crypto exposure, allocations ranged from 0.5% to 13% of investable assets. Most were between 1% and 2%.
- Every institution in the group that owned crypto held Bitcoin, usually as its largest and longest-held position.
Who Bitwise spoke to and what would make them sell
Bitwise said the interviews included investment professionals at endowments, foundations, public pensions, sovereign wealth funds, multi-family offices, investment consultants and public companies.
When asked what could prompt them to sell, none of the institutions named falling prices. They pointed instead to a regulatory reversal, an industry-wide credibility crisis, or a failure of their investment thesis.
Bitcoin anchors portfolios while Ether and Solana must prove their case
For almost all the Bitcoin holders interviewed, Bitcoin was their first, largest and longest-held crypto asset. Most treated it as a store of value, often alongside gold.
Confidence in Ether and Solana was less consistent. Several institutions said they could exit those assets over the next few years if growth in areas such as stablecoins (crypto tokens designed to hold a steady value), decentralized finance and tokenization failed to translate into value for the tokens themselves.
Bitwise also said one institution that held neither Ether nor Solana had used decentralized finance applications extensively, but saw no clear way that activity would benefit the underlying tokens.
Funds are the main route in, while a CoinShares report points the other way
Bitwise said almost every institution it interviewed either used spot crypto exchange-traded funds (funds that hold crypto and trade on stock exchanges) or planned to. Some investors were shifting from private placements or direct custody toward ETFs.
Separately, a 13F data report from CoinShares published in June found that professional investors' reported US spot Bitcoin ETF exposure fell 17% in the first quarter. Hedge funds and brokerages accounted for roughly 96% of the reduction, while banks added exposure.
What is confirmed
Bitwise has published an Institutional Crypto Adoption Report based on interviews with 15 institutions conducted in late March and April. The company says none of those institutions cut crypto allocations during a roughly 50% drawdown, that several bought more, and that Bitcoin was the most widely held and usually the largest position. It also reports the allocation range of 0.5% to 13%, the common 1% to 2% range, and the reasons institutions gave for potentially selling.
The CoinShares figures on first-quarter US spot Bitcoin ETF exposure, the role of hedge funds and brokerages in the reduction, and the rise in bank exposure are also reported from that firm's 13F data report.
What is still unclear
The Bitwise findings rest on a small group of 15 interviews, so they describe those institutions rather than the wider institutional market. The source does not name the institutions or give the exact dates used to measure the roughly 50% decline.
The two sets of numbers also measure different things. Bitwise's conclusions come from interviews about overall crypto allocations, while the CoinShares figure covers reported US spot Bitcoin ETF exposure from 13F data.
Why this matters
The interviews suggest that, for this group of institutions, a sharp price drop by itself was not a reason to sell, and that Bitcoin was the asset they were most willing to hold. They also show that Ether and Solana face more questions, with some investors tying any future sale to whether network growth turns into value for the tokens.
Sources
Newisty Editorial Team covers technology, cryptocurrency, digital products, online platforms, developer tools and the wider digital economy. Our content is researched from official sources, company announcements, public documentation, market data and other primary or reputable sources. Articles are reviewed and edited before publication for clarity, accuracy and useful context.