In a recent 13F filing, Goldman Sachs disclosed increasing its Bitcoin holdings in the last quarter of 2024. The major growth of the BTC portion in the bank’s portfolio was immediately noticeable compared to the previous quarter.
A 13F filing is a quarterly report mandated by the SEC from institutional investment firms with over $100 million in assets under management. These filings provide transparency into the holdings of major market investors like Goldman Sachs’ $1.58B in Bitcoin ETF holdings across the BlackRock iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) and Wise Origin Bitcoin Trust (FBTC).
Disclosing these holdings gives insight into investment strategies and portfolio adjustments.
Goldman Sachs’ Bitcoin ETF holdings
Goldman Sachs recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) showed that the bank’s Bitcoin related ETF holdings as of December 31 were significantly higher than they were in the previous Q3 2024. The bank’s Bitcoin holdings have been on a steady upward trend despite its CEO’s skepticism of digital assets.
These increases are notable within BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) and Fidelity’s Wise Origin Bitcoin Trust (FBTC).
Goldman Sachs holds approximately $1.27B in IBIT, equivalent to 24,077,861 shares. This represents an 88% increase in shares compared to the previous quarter’s filing of 12.7 million shares worth $461M which covered July through September.
The bank’s investment in FBTC increased to $288M, totaling 3,530,486 shares. This represents a 105% increase from the prior quarter. There was also a 97% decrease in the GBTC shares held by the bank.
Goldman Sachs’ strategic options position
The 13F filing also revealed Goldman Sachs’ engagement in options strategies related to its Bitcoin ETF holdings. As of December 31, the bank held $760M in options trading positions through spot ETFs.
A breakdown of the $760M shows an IBIT call position valued at $157 million, an IBIT put position valued at $527 million, and an FBTC put position worth $84 million.
In addition to these positions, the 13F filing also showed that the bank decreased or closed several smaller Bitcoin ETF holdings.
ARK 21Shares’ ARKB, Bitwise’s BITB, Grayscale’s mini Bitcoin trust, Invesco Galaxy’s BTCO, and Wisdom Tree’s BTCW were all closed. This could be Goldman Sachs’ attempt at strategically consolidating its cryptocurrency-related investments.
Earlier this year, the bank reported that its net revenue for the last quarter of 2024 was $13.8B, while its net earnings for the fourth quarter were $4.11B.
The CEO of Goldman Sachs, David Solomon, criticized Bitcoin before, saying it was a threat to the US dollar’s dominance. However, he has since turned to emphasizing the need for regulatory changes with his bank’s increased exposure to Bitcoin.
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