The Kingdom of Bhutan is gradually pulling back from its famous Bitcoin experiment. Over the last 18 months, the country has sold about 70% of its Bitcoin stash. In October 2024, Bhutan held approximately 13,000 BTC, but that number has now dropped to just 3,954 BTC. The remaining amount is worth around $280.6 million. Data shows that this year alone, over $215 million in Bitcoin was moved out of the country’s accounts.
It looks like Bhutan has also slowed or stopped its Bitcoin mining work. The country used to use its plentiful hydropower to run mining machines. This was a unique plan for a small country. However, records show that no large amounts of new BTC have come into the government’s digital wallets for over a year.
The sovereign wealth fund, known as Druk Holding and Investments, has not said anything publicly about why the mining has stopped or why they are selling so much. There are a few good reasons why this shift might be happening. When Bitcoin prices were higher and the network was easier to work with, mining was very profitable. Now, the math has changed.
Bitcoin prices are lower, and the network is much harder to mine. On top of that, mining rewards were recently cut in half. Bhutan might find it better to sell its electricity to neighboring India rather than use it to mine Bitcoin.
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Bhutan’s choice to sell is quite different from what other big players are doing. Many large companies and other countries are currently buying more Bitcoin or gold. For example, some companies are buying thousands of BTC every week. While others are adding to their holdings, Bhutan is the only state-level holder that is selling off its coins.
This move shows the hard reality of running a state-owned Bitcoin mine. While the idea sounds great at first. The costs of keeping up with new technology and changing prices can be very high for a small nation.
Bhutan is now watching its holdings shrink while private companies grow their stashes much faster. For now, it seems the mountain kingdom is choosing to take its profits rather than keep mining.