Abu Dhabi funds lift IBIT stake to $1B

Abu Dhabi-based investment funds boosted their exposure to BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF to more than $1 billion by the end of 2025, according to new filings with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

Mubadala Investment Company and Al Warda Investments, linked to the Abu Dhabi Investment Council, collectively held nearly 21 million shares of iShares Bitcoin Trust, with Mubadala owning about $630 million and Al Warda roughly $408 million at year-end valuations.

Mubadala increased its stake by almost 4 million shares in the fourth quarter to around 12.7 million shares, while Al Warda lifted its holding by roughly 255,000 shares to more than 8.2 million shares.

Despite the build-up, IBIT shares have fallen 22.5% year-to-date as Bitcoin retreated, reducing the combined value of the two funds’ holdings to about $803 million based on a recent IBIT price of $38.44.

Bitcoin ETFs have shed more than $21 billion in total assets under management this year, declining from roughly $116.7 billion to about $95.5 billion, according to CoinGlass data, though modest inflows were recorded late last week.

Other institutions have trimmed exposure, with Harvard University cutting its IBIT stake by 1.46 million shares, or about $56 million, while initiating an $86 million position in iShares Ethereum Trust.

Bitcoin was recently trading near $67,718, down about 46% from its October all-time high of $126,080, underscoring the volatility facing institutional ETF investors.

At the time of reporting, Bitcoin price was $67,271.91.