TLDR:
- Bitwise found none of 15 institutions cut crypto exposure during the market’s roughly 50% drawdown period.
- Several institutions increased crypto allocations, while most respondents kept exposure between 1% and 2%.
- Bitcoin was held by every surveyed crypto investor and was usually their largest and longest-held asset.
- Farside logged $691.7M of ETF outflows on June 25 and another $444.5M on June 26 during the sell-off.
Institutional crypto investors did not retreat during the market’s roughly 50% drawdown, according to Bitwise’s first Institutional Crypto Adoption Report. The firm interviewed 15 large allocators and found none reduced crypto exposure between October 2025 and April 2026.
Several instead increased allocations. That finding complicates the narrative around heavy Bitcoin ETF outflows. Public fund data showed substantial selling, yet longer-term institutional allocators largely stayed invested.
Bitcoin ETF Allocators Held Firm Through 50% Drawdown
The institutions included endowments, foundations, pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, multi-family offices and public companies. Their portfolios ranged from hundreds of millions to tens of billions.
Crypto allocations ranged from 0.5% to 13% of investable assets, although most respondents held between 1% and 2%. Exposure extended beyond ETF products. Institutions also used directly held crypto, venture investments and hedge funds, giving them several ways to maintain market exposure.
Bitcoin was the common holding across every institution already invested in crypto. It was usually their first, largest and longest-held digital asset. Some allocators paired Bitcoin with gold within broader store-of-value strategies. Ethereum and Solana, however, received less consistent support.
Those assets were generally treated as smaller, shorter-duration technology investments. Continued ownership depended on network adoption translating into token value. Importantly, falling prices alone were not cited as an exit trigger. Respondents instead pointed to thesis failure, regulatory reversals or an industry credibility crisis.
ETF Outflows Masked Longer-Term Institutional Crypto Holding
Market data still showed heavy ETF withdrawals during the downturn. Bitwise described the second quarter as the worst quarter for spot Bitcoin ETF outflows. Farside Investors recorded $691.7 million of withdrawals on June 25 and another $444.5 million on June 26.
Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart said ETF flows and Form 13F filings broadly supported Bitwise’s findings. He said hedge funds and retail investors accounted for much of the selling, while longer-term allocators generally remained invested.
Still, Form 13F data offers only a partial view. Qualifying managers report covered securities quarterly, generally within 45 days. Those filings do not capture every investment vehicle or retail position. Bitwise also found some institutions intentionally used structures that avoided 13F visibility.
The firm therefore argued that reported institutional crypto ownership should be treated as a floor, not a complete measure. The sample was small and anonymized, covering only 15 institutions. Even so, the data draws a clear distinction between ETF outflows and institutional exits.
That distinction matters when interpreting headline fund flows. During the 50% drawdown, surveyed allocators largely held their positions, and some bought more rather than reducing exposure.
