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With cryptocurrencies gaining popularity across the world, institutional investors and corporate treasuries are showing more interest in crypto investments. As of 28 June 2021, 34 public companies collectively hold over 213,000 bitcoins, according to data from CryptoTreasuries. Together, these represent 1.14% of the total supply of bitcoins in circulation and are equivalent to US$7.4 billion based on price on 28 June 2021. In addition to blockchain and bitcoin mining companies, some companies that do not conduct businesses related to digital assets such as the business intelligence software company MicroStrategy and electric-automobile manufacturer Tesla also hold large amounts of bitcoin on the balance sheet, as bitcoin is seen as an inflation hedge. Let's take a look at the top 10 public companies investing in cryptocurrency.
MicroStrategy, a prominent business analytics platform, has adopted Bitcoin as its primary reserve asset. Throughout 2021, the firm which produces mobile software and cloud-based services continued its Bitcoin buying binge. It now holds 105,085 BTC in reserve, equivalent to over US$3.3 billion in BTC.
Electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla has joined the ranks of companies holding Bitcoin, with an SEC filing revealing that the company invested "an aggregate US$1.50 billion" in the cryptocurrency. Tesla sold 10% of its Bitcoin holdings in Q1 2021; according to CEO Elon Musk, this was "to prove liquidity of Bitcoin as an alternative to holding cash on the balance sheet."
Tesla's 42,902 BTC are currently worth US$1.37 billion, with Bitcoin's 2021 price slump meaning that the company potentially faces an impairment loss of between US$25 million and US$100 million in the next quarter. Tesla's Bitcoin purchase reflects an updated investment policy aimed at diversifying its cash on hand and maximizing returns.
The largest institutional holder of Bitcoin to be directly involved with the crypto industry, crypto-focused merchant bank Galaxy Digital Holdings holds 16,400 BTC worth just over US$522 million at current prices.
Crypto brokerage Voyager Digital holds 12,260 BTC worth around US$390 million at current prices. The firm aims to provide a one-stop-shop for trading digital assets, and in May 2021 reported quarterly revenue of US$60.4 million, up 16x from the previous quarter. "We saw exponential adoption of cryptocurrencies as a recognized and investable asset class," said CEO Steven Ehrlich at the time.
Payments firm Square purchased approximately 4,709 bitcoins for an aggregate price of US$50 million in October 2020 and acquired an additional 3,318 bitcoins for US$170 million in February 2021. The average price of all its bitcoin purchases is US$27,407 per token. The company announced that it has no plan to purchase more bitcoin in May 2021, while it is looking into creating a hardware bitcoin wallet for users to store their cryptos without Square's custody.
Marathon Digital Holdings, a US bitcoin mining company, increased its bitcoin holdings to around 5,518 bitcoins as of May 2021. The company purchased approximately 4,813 bitcoins at an average price of US$36,857 in January 2021. From January to May 2021, it has produced 580.5 newly minted bitcoins. Hut 8 Mining, another bitcoin mining company based in Canada, holds more self-mined bitcoin than any other bitcoin miner or public company.
Arguably the best-known crypto firm in this list, crypto exchange Coinbase went public in a direct listing on the Nasdaq in April 2021. The move was greeted as a landmark for the crypto industry, though that hasn't been borne out by Coinbase's declining stock price; by July 2021, COIN was a full third lower than its price on its listing. Ahead of its listing, in February 2021, Coinbase revealed that it held US$230 million in Bitcoin on its balance sheet; by July 2021, its Bitcoin holdings had slipped to US$143 million (4,482 BTC).
Germany-based venture capital firm Bitcoin Group SE holds 3,947 BTC, worth US$126 million at today's prices. Its investments include crypto exchange Bitcoin.de and Futurum bank, which merged in October 2020 to form "Germany's first crypto bank".
Canadian crypto mining firm Hut 8 holds 3,522 BTC, worth US$112 million. In June 2021, the company was listed on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the HUT ticker, with the company's SEC filing noting that it's "committed to growing shareholder value by increasing the number and value of our bitcoin holdings. In June 2021, Hut 8 shared its ambitious goal of mining 5,000 BTC by the end of the year; with the company snapping up new mining machines and China's crackdown reducing
Another crypto-mining outfit, US-based Riot Blockchain, brings up the rear of the top 10, with relatively modest holdings of 2,243 BTC, worth US$71 million at today's prices.
