Harvard University has significantly increased its investment in Bitcoin by nearly tripling its holdings in BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT). A recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) reveals that Harvard held 6,813,612 shares of IBIT as of September 30, a substantial increase of 257% from the 1,900,000 shares it possessed in June.
The university's investment in IBIT is now its largest declared U.S. holding, surpassing its positions in major companies like Microsoft, Amazon, and the SPDR Gold Trust. At the end of the third quarter, the IBIT position was valued at $442.8 million, although its value has since decreased to approximately $364.4 million due to a recent decline in Bitcoin's price. Despite this fluctuation, the increased investment signals a growing institutional acceptance of Bitcoin, even amidst market volatility.
Harvard's move is particularly noteworthy considering the university's traditionally conservative investment approach. The decision to significantly increase Bitcoin exposure through ETFs reflects the accelerating adoption of cryptocurrency among traditional financial institutions. Eric Balchunas, a Bloomberg ETF analyst, described Harvard's allocation as a significant validation for spot Bitcoin ETFs, emphasizing how uncommon it is for an endowment, especially one as prestigious as Harvard or Yale, to invest directly in an ETF.
Harvard joins a growing number of universities adding regulated Bitcoin products to their portfolios. Brown University, for example, holds $13.8 million in IBIT shares. This trend emerges even as Bitcoin ETFs experienced considerable outflows recently, with the 11 spot Bitcoin ETFs seeing roughly $869 million in outflows on one Thursday alone.
BlackRock's IBIT has become a dominant force in the Bitcoin ETF market. The fund has attracted over 35% of total Bitcoin ETF inflows and manages more than half of all assets held in U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs. In the past month, IBIT added $1.2 billion, bringing its assets under management beyond $19.4 billion.
While Harvard's IBIT holdings represent a small portion of its $57 billion endowment, the increase is a significant indicator of the changing landscape of institutional investment. It suggests a long-term investment strategy and growing confidence in Bitcoin as an asset class. Furthermore, Harvard's simultaneous increase in gold holdings through the GLD ETF may reflect a broader strategy focused on alternative assets amidst concerns about monetary policy.
