Institutions Did Not Sell Bitcoin During Crash, Some Bought More: Bitwise

The world's biggest institutional investors did not sell their crypto holdings when prices dropped by half between October 2025 and April 2026.

In fact, some of them bought during the downturn.

That conclusion comes from a Bitwise Asset Management report that involved interviews with senior allocators at 15 large institutions — among them endowments, pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, family offices and public companies.

During the sell-off, none of them cut their crypto allocation. When asked what would prompt them to exit, no one cited a price decline.

All institutions in the study that hold crypto own bitcoin. For almost all, it was their first crypto purchase, their biggest holding, and the one they have kept the longest.

Other digital assets are treated differently: institutions hold smaller quantities as speculative technology wagers, with specific time frames to demonstrate their worth. According to the report, bitcoin is the only crypto asset for which institutional conviction remains steady.

One endowment characterized its stance as a long-term wager that bitcoin's market will reach $20 trillion in the next five to 15 years.

Many allocators now see bitcoin alongside gold as a protection against currency debasement. Several endowments put the two assets together. One institution records bitcoin directly in its "gold bucket," and one sovereign wealth fund is partially financing its crypto allocation by offloading gold and foreign exchange reserves.

“People are starting to use bitcoin as a fiat debasement trade along with gold,” one large endowment told Bitwise.

The debasement trade refers to investors purchasing an asset to hedge against currency depreciation. Last year the trade was popular and boosted bitcoin's rally, but the digital asset's momentum faded after October when traders focused on artificial intelligence-related stocks.

One institution went even further, implying that within ten years it could drop gold completely for bitcoin.

These investors indicate they would depart only if the core thesis collapsed — such as via a regulatory reversal or a sector-wide credibility crisis. Volatility by itself does not sway them. Some have already endured several drawdowns exceeding 50%, including the 2022 downturn.

“If the thesis is right, given the S-curve of adoption, selling now would be selling too early,” one investment consultant said.

Bitwise stated that it anticipates a majority of institutions will own crypto within five years.

Nevertheless, the message is evident: for institutions already invested, bitcoin is not a trade. It is a long-term asset.

Bitcoin's price recently was $84,506 — unchanged over 24 hours but up nearly 7% over the last 30 days. The digital asset began a rally in August and climbed again last week. Some analysts have stated that bitcoin is now in a bull market again.