U.S. Spot Bitcoin ETFs Now Eclipse Satoshi Nakamoto’s Legendary Stash

U.S. spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have collectively overtaken Satoshi Nakamoto—the cryptocurrency’s elusive founder—as the single largest known holder of Bitcoin. Data compiled by Shaun Edmondson and highlighted by Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas indicate that as of December 5, these funds combined held around 1,105,923 BTC, surpassing the estimated 1.1 million BTC traditionally attributed to Satoshi.

This milestone propels U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs ahead of major institutional and state-level holders. Prominent players like MicroStrategy, with 402,100 BTC, and even government entities such as the United States—with 208,109 BTC in seized funds—now trail behind these ETFs. The collective ETF holdings have surged at remarkable speed, fueled by a flurry of inflows since their January launch. On Thursday alone, net inflows reached approximately $766.7 million, pushing their total above the iconic 1.1 million BTC mark, according to data from The Block.

BlackRock’s IBIT product leads the ETF pack, now holding 521,164 BTC, while the recently converted Grayscale GBTC fund holds 214,217 BTC and Fidelity’s FBTC manages 199,183 BTC. In total, the 12 U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs have attracted more than $33 billion in inflows this year, with nearly $2.4 billion added this week alone.

This rapid accumulation by ETFs has unfolded alongside a significant uptick in Bitcoin’s price, which has climbed over 130% this year and surpassed the $100,000 threshold. As a result, these ETFs now oversee more than $100 billion in assets under management—an astonishing achievement for products still under a year old.

Satoshi’s revered cache, widely accepted to be around 1.1 million BTC, has remained untouched since Bitcoin’s earliest days. Research by experts like Sergio Demian Lerner, who identified the “Patoshi Pattern” in the initial mined blocks, supports this estimate. Although the identity and whereabouts of Bitcoin’s original holder remain unknown, that pioneering trove of coins—once the largest known holding—now sits behind a thriving and rapidly growing field of institutional investment products.