The split comes as Bitcoin has climbed about 30% over two months, moving from a February low near $62,000 to around $80,621 by May 12. 

Bitcoin price chart | Source: Tradingview

The rally has renewed debate over whether Bitcoin can act as a durable hedge during fiscal stress or still trades mainly as a high-risk asset.

MARA Uses Bitcoin to Fund AI Shift

MARA Holdings disclosed in its May 12 earnings report that it sold 20,880 Bitcoin worth $1.5 billion during Q1 2026. The company used $1 billion of those proceeds to retire about 30% of its convertible debt, cutting obligations from $3.3 billion to $2.3 billion.

The sale pushed MARA from second to fourth among public companies holding Bitcoin. It ended the quarter with 35,303 BTC, worth roughly $2.84 billion, while reporting a $1.26 billion net loss.

MARA is using the remaining capital to fund its $1.5 billion Long Ridge Energy and Power campus acquisition in Ohio. The deal includes a 505-megawatt gas-fired plant and 1,600 acres for AI data center development.

Management now expects to repurpose up to 90% of mining capacity for AI workloads. CFO Salman Khan said Bitcoin remains both a reserve asset and a source of strategic financial flexibility.

JPMorgan Keeps Gold Comparison Alive

JPMorgan analysts led by Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou said Bitcoin ETFs recorded inflows for three straight months through May. Meanwhile, gold ETFs continued recovering from March outflows linked to the Iran conflict.

The bank said Bitcoin has been rising at gold’s expense. That view supports the debasement trade, where investors move into scarce assets as fiat currencies weaken over time.

Ray Dalio also reinforced the broader store-of-value argument. He said history shows fiat currencies lose value during such periods, while gold usually strengthens.

Treasury Strategies Move Apart

Strategy remains on the opposite side of MARA’s decision. JPMorgan said the company added 145,834 BTC year to date and could buy $30 billion worth of Bitcoin in 2026 at its current pace.

Strategy now holds 818,334 BTC worth more than $65 billion. MARA, IREN, and DMG are instead redirecting capital toward AI power infrastructure.

The split shows two competing views inside the Bitcoin treasury market. Strategy sees Bitcoin as a long-term shield against currency debasement, while MARA treats it as balance-sheet capital for AI expansion.

Gold still has strong institutional support. Goldman Sachs raised its year-end gold target to $5,400 per ounce, citing lower volatility and central bank demand.

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The cryptocurrency has fallen by almost 40% of its worth since October, and Burry warns that this fall may give rise to a self-feeding death spiral. 

In his most recent article, he points to the threat of a further decline in the prices of significant corporate holders and miners. Should the price of Bitcoin decline by another 10%, Burry forecasts that it will have serious financial implications for both.

The price slump and fallout of Bitcoin

The price of Bitcoin has declined to below 73,000 in the recent past, the lowest in the history of the cryptocurrency since Donald Trump came back to the white house in 2025. 

Analysts explain the depreciation by the poor market flows and interest from investors. Burry, however, sees more trouble in store. 

Bitcoin has not been able to gain traction even after being adopted by corporate treasuries and the introduction of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) into the market. 

Burry thinks that the price of Bitcoin might keep declining without any natural application or a basis on which it can revive itself.

The central issue that Burry is concerned with is the close to 200 publicly traded companies that possess Bitcoin. 

Such companies may be under intense pressure if the price of Bitcoin keeps going down. 

When the value of their Bitcoin wallets declines, the financial documents would include the loss, which would drive risk managers to dispose of their assets. 

This may further deteriorate the price drop as selling begets more selling, forming a vicious circle.

Bankruptcy risk among miners

The scenario is even worse when Bitcoin drops to approximately $50,000. This would drive miners to bankruptcy, according to Burry. 

These organizations that were largely dependent on the price of Bitcoin to stay profitable would not withstand a massive decrease in the price of Bitcoin. 

With an increasing number of miners going bankrupt, the market may be exposed to a significant liquidity crisis, which would further destabilize the financial situation in the crypto sector in general.

Burry also warns about tokenized assets associated with Bitcoin, more specifically, tokenized gold and silver futures. 

He asserts that the continued liquidation of these assets is already impacting the general commodities market. 

The vulnerability of the crypto market is being bled into the traditional markets, with investors selling tokenized precious metals to offset losses on declining crypto prices. 

This has caused a decrease in the real metals market, and a ripple effect is likely to get it worse in case Bitcoin moves in the downwards way.

Contagion across markets

Burry demonstrates the influx of spot Bitcoin ETFs as a driving factor in the rise in correlation between Bitcoin and the stock market. 

As the correlation of Bitcoin and S&P 500 is currently 0.50, Burry cautions that the decrease in prices could cause the stock market to fall further, and as a result, the price of Bitcoin will go down. 

Also, the Bitcoin ETFs experienced massive withdrawals, with clients withdrawing their money following the poor performance of the token. 

This may further accelerate the current sell-off, as institutional shareholders seek to protect themselves against further losses.

An unpromising future for Bitcoin

According to the analysis by Burry, Bitcoin has a dark future because this decline in prices puts a strain on the corporate holders as well as miners and the entire crypto market. 

With a further drop in the value of Bitcoin, the market will be in a death spiral, and businesses and miners will have to sell their assets. 

The closer Bitcoin is correlated to the traditional markets, the higher the probability of contamination. 

All these things being said, investors are keeping a close eye on the next steps of Bitcoin in the hope that the worst is still behind.

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According to on-chain data provided by Barchart, IBIT generated $3.7 billion in trading volume, outpacing the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO), which recorded $3.28 billion, placing IBIT among the most actively traded ETFs across the US ETF market. The shift in price followed the Monday announcement, when Vanguard revealed that it would begin allowing Bitcoin ETFs and crypto mutual funds to trade on its brokerage platform.

IBIT hits milestone as BTC price rebounds

BlackRock’s IBIT ETF has accumulated more than $66.2 billion in total so far, representing a 3.88% share of BTC, according to on-chain data by SoSoValue. In addition, the ETF recorded a net outflow of $65.92 million in December alone, bringing the total to $2.34 billion withdrawn in November. To date, BlackRock manages over 1,400 ETFs, with assets under management exceeding $13.4 trillion.

As IBIT saw a surge in part of its trading volume, Bitcoin also experienced a rebound yesterday, with a 7% price increase over the past 24 hours. At the time of publication, BTC was trading around $92,990. Ethereum, XRP, and Dogecoin also gained about 7% during the same period. Cardano’s ADA, one of the primary cap tokens, increased by 14% as well as Chainlink’s LINK, which recorded an 11% increase.

According to a report by Cryptopolitan, Vanguard Group, the world’s second-largest asset manager, announced on Monday that it plans to expand its scope in the crypto industry, enabling the trading of mutual funds and ETFs that invest in cryptocurrencies. The asset manager clarified that it would enable its users to trade ETFs and mutual funds that focus on Bitcoin, Ether, XRP, and Solana.

Andrew Kadjeski, head of brokerage and investments at Vanguard, said that they conducted a test on crypto ETFs and mutual funds, which delivered results that showed they functioned as intended, as investors found it easy to buy and sell them. Meanwhile, Vanguard’s asset base exceeds $11 trillion and is accessible to over 50 million brokerage clients.

In contrast to the growth momentum of crypto ETFs like IBIT, Bitcoin mining stocks have maintained a declining trend, which has persisted despite broader market recoveries. Iren’s stock dropped approximately 15% over the past 24 hours, marking one of the most significant declines among publicly traded miners. Cipher mining, on the other hand, fell by approximately 10% and TeraWulf declined by approximately 7%.

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Even after a short rebound on Tuesday, Bitcoin is still down more than 20% this quarter. The drop affected the entire market, hitting Wall Street firms, retail traders, and even holders of the US president’s meme coin with Donald Trump back in the White House. Harvard kept its position even as prices slid. Traders across exchanges logged heavy liquidations while long holders watched gains from earlier in the year thin fast.

Harvard suffers a balance dent amid Bitcoin decline

If Harvard had sold its holdings around early October, the school could have walked away flat or with a small win before the slide deepened. The average price paid is not public. If the school still holds some or all of the 4.9 million shares it picked up last quarter, the best-case outcome now shows a 14% loss. That math assumes the buy happened in early July, when Bitcoin traded at its lowest level for the quarter.

Under that timing, Harvard would have spent about $294 million on shares now worth roughly $255 million. Another 1.9 million shares bought in the second quarter, before the 2025 run heated up, likely sit on smaller losses or narrow gains. The exact mix depends on timing. On paper, the loss barely dents the school’s balance sheet. Harvard runs a $57 billion endowment, the largest in the United States.

The Bitcoin position listed as of September 30 made up less than 1% of total assets. Still, the timing shows how deeply Bitcoin now sits inside large institutional portfolios. Big money kept flowing in even after prices ran far ahead of past cycles. Before the pullback, Bitcoin had gained 34% in 2025, setting a record above $126,000. Other investments made by Harvard have shown mixed results over time.

Over the past decade, the endowment delivered an 8.2% annualized return, ranking ninth out of ten among Ivy League and peer schools tracked by Markov Processes International. Results improved under the current chief N. P. “Narv” Narvekar. During his eight-year run, the endowment posted a 9.6% annualized return. For the year ending June 30, Harvard reported an 11.9% gain, trailing Massachusetts Institute of Technology at 14.8% and Stanford University at 14.3%.

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The proposed fund will provide exposure to a variety of digital assets, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana. Should it be approved, the ETF will list on the NYSE Arca under an as-yet-unannounced ticker symbol.

The asset manager with $1.77 trillion is also trying to provide investors with access to the diversified cryptocurrency market and aims to outperform the FTSE Crypto U.S. Listed Index. It is the first time the company has made a direct venture into the digital asset space, marking the growing recognition of cryptocurrencies by conventional financial institutions.

A multi-asset fund that is actively managed

The SEC filing stated that the Active Crypto ETF will have five to fifteen cryptocurrencies. Some of the assets are Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Solana (SOL), XRP, Dogecoin (DOGE), Cardano (ADA), Avalanche (AVAX), Shiba Inu (SHIB), and Litecoin (LTC). The composition might change according to the market environment and regulatory direction.

The fund will maintain a portion of its assets in cash, stablecoins, or liquid investments with short durations, such as bank deposits, to ensure sufficient liquidity. Rowe Price Sponsor LLC will manage T. Fund operations, trading, and general strategy. The trustee will be CSC Delaware Trust Company, which will ensure adherence to the regulations, and T. Rowe Price Associates will assume the accounting, record-keeping, and reporting responsibilities.

Possibility of staking and income generation

The filing also highlights a future strategy to incorporate staking activities, provided there is explicit approval from the regulators. Staking has the potential to enable the ETF to generate additional revenue in support of blockchain network operations. Nonetheless, the company stated that it will not proceed until the SEC establishes a definitive framework for such practices.

The actively managed structure will enable investment experts to observe market trends, evaluate volatility, and adjust positions to capitalize on long-term growth opportunities. The strategy will distinguish the fund based on passive ETFs that merely track a specific cryptocurrency index.

Increasing institutional demand for crypto ETFs

The action by T. Rowe Price is in response to the increase in demand for exposure to digital assets among institutional and retail clients. BlackRock, Fidelity, and Grayscale have already launched Bitcoin ETFs, with a cumulative investment collection of over $150 billion. Later in the year, Ethereum ETFs were approved and soon had amassed $23 billion in assets.

Other companies, such as VanEck and ProShares, have not been left behind, as they have also filed their own multi-asset crypto ETFs. The SEC is evaluating over 90 crypto ETF applications, including individual assets and diversified digital funds.

The filing by T. Rowe Price is another notable move towards an emerging intersection of traditional finance and digital assets. The conservative yet strategic nature of the company is an indication that conservative financial institutions are reaching a point where they are willing to consider cryptocurrency as a valid and regulated investment opportunity in the United States.

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According to reports, the fund held 8,726,972 IBIT shares as of March 31, 2025, an increase from the 8,235,533 shares reported at the end of 2024. The 491,436 additional IBIT shares exposure showcases more interest in holding Bitcoin as an investment asset. UAE Mubadala, a sovereign investment fund, revealed in an SEC filing that in late 2024, it invested $436 million in BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF.

UAE-based Mubadala tops up its Bitcoin ETF holding

The disclosure was made through a 13F filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). This is the first time a Gulf sovereign wealth fund has showcased its investment in Bitcoin through an ETF. The UAE, through another sovereign wealth fund, ADQ, has indirectly invested in Bitcoin by partnering with Marathon Digital Holdings for a digital asset mining company in Abu Dhabi.

More recently, Bahrain-based Al Abraaj Restaurants Group B.S.C. (Ticker: ABRAAJ), a publicly listed company on the Bahrain Bourse, announced that it has put Bitcoin on its balance sheet. As per the news, the Group has purchased Bitcoin in partnership with U.S.-based 10X Capital, becoming the first publicly traded company in the Kingdom of Bahrain, the Gulf Cooperation Council (“GCC”), and the Middle East to acquire Bitcoin as a treasury asset.

Al Abraaj has acquired an initial amount of 5 BTC with plans to build on this initial purchase and begin allocating a significant portion of its corporate treasury into Bitcoin. As per the announcement, Al Abraaj considers Bitcoin to be its reserve treasury asset. Al Abraaj is a profitable company, with a 2024 EBITDA of USD 12.5 million.

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According to a recent U.S. SEC filing, the board sold all 6,060,351 IBIT shares, previously valued at approximately $355.6 million. The move follows an earlier decision to fully liquidate its $63.7 million stake in the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC).

The filing, submitted on May 15, showed that SWIB reported no holdings in any spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds as of the end of March. The asset manager, which oversaw more than $166 billion in total assets at the close of 2024, had previously shifted its entire GBTC exposure to IBIT in the last quarter of that year.

Institutional activity reflects shifting market sentiment

At the same time, other big institutional investors made changes to their holdings in Bitcoin ETFs. Prices falling by 12% in Q1 made a lot of investors decrease their investments. Millennium Management sold 41% of its Invesco Bitcoin ETF shares and no longer holds shares of the ETF. The firm held on to 81.4% of its stake in IBIT while reducing it by 15.6%. Despite these sell-offs, Millennium put more money into other Bitcoin products such as ARK 21 Shares Bitcoin ETF and Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust.

Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala investment fund bought more shares and owned 8.7 million shares of IBIT, which were worth over $408 million by the end of March. Brown University joined the cryptocurrency ETF market for the first time, buying a 4.9 million dollar share of IBIT. Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan explained that the decrease in ETF positions came as the premium on Bitcoin futures collapsed, limiting returns from popular basis trading strategies. He noted that this shift reached its lowest point in late March.

ETF flows swing sharply in May

Data from Farside showed a sharp reversal in net flows for spot Bitcoin ETFs between May 13 and May 14. On May 13, the funds saw outflows totaling $91.4 million, all attributed to Fidelity’s FBTC. No other issuers recorded positive inflows that day.

The next day, $319.5 million of net inflows were recorded. The largest sum came from BlackRock’s IBIT, totaling $232.9 million, and FBTC with $36.1 million came in second. Furthermore, ETFs like BITB, ARKB, and BRRR all experienced positive changes. Grayscale’s GBTC had an inflow of $35.2 million after constantly reporting outflows.

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The market was volatile following the incident, and Bitcoin’s price skyrocketed to more than $1000 above after the deceptive post was posted until it was deleted. Council, a 25-year-old from Athens, Alabama, also pleaded guilty this year to charges of conspiracy to commit aggravated identity theft and access device fraud.

Council used SIM swap to access SEC account

Based on federal filings, it is clear that Council performed a SIM swap attack to hijack the SEC’s official social media account. By giving a fraudulent ID to a telecommunication firm, he was able to get them to move the number of a federal employee to a SIM card that he controlled. This step enabled him to request a password reset code and get access to the SEC’s X account. 

He then forwarded the credentials to co-conspirators so they could publish the fake Bit coin ETF approval announcement. The message confused the investors since anticipations for an actual decision on spot Bitcoin ETFs were high. The following day, the SEC formally approved the ETFs in an official release; however, it was too late, as the damage from the fraudulent release had already happened.

Prosecutors emphasize severity of the crime

According to the prosecution, Council’s actions were part of a larger fraud scheme involving forged identification and collaboration with others in the US and abroad. He is reported to have made $50,000 from the hack. Investigators also found that he had searched online about how to determine whether the FBI was investigating him.

Federal officials stressed that the severity and sophistication of the scheme justified the recommended two-year sentence. Council’s sentencing is scheduled for May 16 in Washington, D.C.

Hack highlights cybersecurity gaps at SEC

The breach also exposed significant weaknesses in the SEC’s digital infrastructure. During the hack, multi-factor authentication was disabled on the agency’s X account due to internal access issues. This vulnerability allowed Council and his group to take over the account easily.

After the incident, the SEC said that multi-factor authentication had been reactivated on all official social media handles and called on the public to use its website for confirmed updates.

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This marks a pause in the record-breaking streak of inflows that brought $2.57 billion into these funds over the prior five weeks, despite Ether’s price gaining 7% during the same period to trade at $3,661.

Outflow follows months of growth in spot ether ETFs

Since October, the outflow has only been the second weekly decline for spot Ether ETFs. During the previous nine weeks, investors had injected $3.18 billion into the sector, helping nearly double its market capitalization from $6.82 billion on October 25 to $13 billion. Spot Ether ETFs have hosted $2.64 billion in net inflows since October, underscoring sustained investor interest.

Weekly spot Ether ETF flows. Source: SoSoValue.

Despite the latest outflow, Ether’s price remained stable, fluctuating between $3,300 and $3,400 for most of the previous week. This consolidation followed a sharp December correction that saw ETH tumble from $4,000 to $3,100.

Bitcoin ETFs turn bullish amid rising inflows

While spot Ether ETFs posted an outflow, spot Bitcoin ETFs saw significant inflows, totaling $245 million during the same week. January 3 was a particularly strong day for Bitcoin ETFs, with a daily inflow of $908 million, the fourth-highest on record.

Weekly spot Bitcoin ETF flows. Source: SoSoValue.

Bitcoin’s price also rose, gaining 6.1% over the past seven days and trading between $96,000 and $98,547 on January 3. Since the launch of spot Bitcoin ETFs, these funds have attracted more than $35.9 billion in inflows, which has helped offset the $21.5 billion in outflows from the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC). As of now, spot Bitcoin ETFs collectively hold a market capitalization of $111.35 billion, representing 5.72% of Bitcoin’s total market value.

BlackRock’s IBIT leads the spot Bitcoin ETF market

BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT) remains the leading spot Bitcoin ETF, boasting a market cap of $54.26 billion. Fidelity’s FBTC and Grayscale’s GBTC follow, each with a market cap of about $20.2 billion.

IBIT also ranked as one of the top ETFs across all sectors in terms of inflows for 2024, attracting $37 billion. It is the third-largest ETF in inflows for the year, trailing Vanguard’s and BlackRock’s S&P 500 ETFs, which secured $122 billion and $49 billion in inflows, respectively. This latest data highlights shifting trends in cryptocurrency ETFs as market dynamics evolve.

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A Bloomberg report attributed this historic achievement to President-elect Donald Trump’s crypto-friendly stance, which has ignited optimism within the cryptocurrency industry. Investors anticipate significant growth under Trump’s proposed regulatory changes, fueling demand for Bitcoin spot ETFs.

Source: Bloomberg

Massive institutional investments in Bitcoin ETFs

Several major funds, including BlackRock and Fidelity, have contributed significantly to the surge in Bitcoin ETF investments. According to Bloomberg, these funds accounted for $9.9 billion in net assets, pushing the total ETF market value to $113 billion. Among the top-performing funds, IBIT leads with a market cap of $55.87 billion, followed by GBTC with $49.80 billion and FBTC with $19.75 billion.

An OKG Research report further highlights the growing institutional interest in Bitcoin ETFs. The report revealed that ETFs now hold about 55% of the current Bitcoin circulation. This trend has developed rapidly since Bitcoin ETFs launched in January, driven by institutional investors channeling large amounts of capital into the funds.

Pro-Crypto policies under Trump administration

Trump’s recent moves to support the cryptocurrency industry have bolstered investor confidence. Last week, the President-elect selected a prominent advocate for digital assets to lead the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Additionally, Trump appointed a White House official who specialized in cryptocurrency and artificial intelligence policy.

Trump has pledged to replace existing regulatory skepticism with more favorable digital asset policies. He has also suggested establishing a national Bitcoin reserve, signaling a dramatic shift in his previous position on crypto. Initially a critic of digital currencies, Trump’s perspective evolved during his campaign, where he received significant backing from the crypto industry.

Bitcoin and Ethereum surge amid bullish sentiment

Bitcoin’s price has soared following Trump’s election victory, hitting a historic milestone of $103,900 on December 5. This marks the first time Bitcoin has crossed into six-figure territory. Analysts, including CryptoQuant CEO Ki Young Ju, predict further growth, with Bitcoin potentially reaching $112,000 by the end of the year.

Ethereum has also seen substantial gains, climbing over 28% in the past month. U.S. spot Ether ETFs have reported significant inflows during the same period. BlackRock’s ETHA ETF has attracted nearly $2 billion since its introduction, reflecting the rising demand for Ethereum investments.

Prominent industry figures have weighed in on these developments. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse described Bitcoin ETFs as the most successful in U.S. history, emphasizing their rapid asset accumulation. Despite skepticism from Wall Street leaders like Jamie Dimon, crypto ETFs have gained traction across major financial institutions. Many skeptics are reportedly profiting from transaction fees associated with these ETFs.

Bitcoin ETFs have become a pivotal force in the financial market, driven by institutional backing and favorable policy changes. As the crypto market continues its historic bull run, investor interest in ETFs remains at an all-time high.

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