Q1 Wall Street institutions' positions revealed: Jane Street's Bitcoin ETF position sharply reduced by 71%, while JPMorgan increased its holdings by as much as 174%

Author: Zhou, ChainCatcher

May 15 is the statutory deadline for institutional investors in the U.S. to submit their Q1 13F forms as required by the SEC. As the documents are gradually made public, the cryptocurrency holdings of major Wall Street institutions are coming to light.

Among them, JPMorgan significantly increased its Bitcoin ETF holdings by 174%, while Jane Street cut its IBIT holdings by 71% and shifted towards Ethereum. Wells Fargo went against the trend by building positions in Ethereum ETFs, while BlackRock's on-chain portfolio shrank by over $20 billion but continued to buy Bitcoin.

In the first quarter of this year, the cryptocurrency market underwent a notable adjustment. Bitcoin's quarterly cumulative decline was about 23.8%, marking the worst quarterly performance since 2018. The total market capitalization of cryptocurrencies fell by 20.4%, retreating approximately 45% from the peak in October 2025.

The Bitcoin spot ETF saw a net outflow of about $497 million for the entire quarter. JPMorgan's analysis shows that the overall capital inflow into digital assets in Q1 was only about $11 billion, only about one-third of the same period last year, indicating a significant slowdown in market momentum.

In such a market environment, the operations of institutions show significant differences.

Jane Street: IBIT Holdings Down 71%, Increased Position in Galaxy Digital

As one of Wall Street's most active proprietary traders, Jane Street's operations in Q1 attracted the most market attention.

According to its latest 13F filing, Jane Street significantly reduced its Bitcoin ETF holdings. Specifically, its holdings in BlackRock iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) decreased by about 71% to approximately 5.9 million shares, with a market value of about $225 million; Fidelity's Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) was cut by about 60% to approximately 2 million shares.

On the other hand, Jane Street clearly increased its allocation to Ethereum. Its holdings in BlackRock iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHA) nearly doubled, and Fidelity's Ethereum Fund (FETH) also saw a significant increase, adding approximately $82 million in exposure.

In terms of cryptocurrency-related stocks, Galaxy Digital's holdings surged from about 17,000 shares to approximately 1.5 million shares, Riot Platforms' holdings increased from about 5 million shares to approximately 7.4 million shares, and Coinbase also saw a slight increase. Its holdings in Strategy decreased from about 968,000 shares to approximately 210,000 shares, a reduction of about 78%. Several Bitcoin mining companies also saw a simultaneous reduction in holdings, including IREN, Cipher Mining, TeraWulf, and Core Scientific.

It should be noted that Jane Street recorded a record trading revenue of $16.1 billion in Q1. The 13F only discloses long positions at the end of the quarter and does not include derivatives or short positions. Bitwise analyst Jeff Park pointed out that Jane Street had previously significantly increased its Strategy holdings by over 470% in prior quarters, and the reduction this quarter is more likely a closure of basis trades rather than a directional bearish stance on Bitcoin.

JPMorgan: Significantly Increased Bitcoin ETF Holdings, Liquidated XRP ETF

In contrast to Jane Street, JPMorgan continued to increase its holdings during a period when Bitcoin's price briefly fell below $80,000. Its IBIT holdings rose from about 3 million shares to approximately 8.3 million shares, an increase of about 174%, adding approximately $162 million in market value.

Additionally, the bank's holdings in Bitwise Bitcoin ETF (BITB) increased by about 900%, Fidelity's FBTC increased by about 450%, and the ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITO), which tracks Bitcoin futures, saw an increase of over 3000%.

In terms of other crypto assets, JPMorgan established its position in the Bitwise Solana Staking ETF (BSOL) for the first time, buying about 47,500 shares, and increased its holdings in BlackRock iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHA) by about 36%. At the same time, the bank completely liquidated its Bitwise XRP ETF.

On the stock side, JPMorgan chose to increase its positions in Strategy, MARA Holdings, and Core Scientific, while reducing its holdings in Coinbase, Galaxy Digital, and Robinhood.

Wells Fargo: Increased Position in Ethereum ETF, Nearly Liquidated Galaxy Digital

Wells Fargo's operations also showed significant internal differentiation.

In terms of Ethereum, its holdings in BlackRock ETHA increased from about 673,000 shares to approximately 1.1 million shares, an increase of about 63.5%; Bitwise Ethereum ETF (ETHW) saw an increase of about 37%, with the total holdings valued at approximately $21.5 million. This increase occurred against the backdrop of Ethereum declining for two consecutive quarters, with a drop of about 28% in Q4 2025 and another drop of about 29% in Q1 2026, while the Ethereum spot ETF saw a quarterly net outflow of about $769 million.

In terms of Bitcoin, Wells Fargo's layout was relatively diversified. IBIT saw a slight reduction, but Bitwise Bitcoin ETF increased by about 24%, and Grayscale Bitcoin Trust increased by about 41%. The Bitcoin ETF overall remains the main component of its crypto exposure, with IBIT's individual holdings valued at approximately $250 million.

On the stock side, Wells Fargo increased its holdings in Strategy from about 323,000 shares to approximately 726,000 shares, an increase of about 125%, adding approximately $41.6 million in exposure. During the same period, Galaxy Digital's holdings plummeted from about 2.5 million shares to approximately 78,600 shares, a decrease of about 97%, reducing exposure by approximately $54.7 million.

BlackRock: Increased Holdings in Strategy and Bitmine, Continued Buying of On-Chain Bitcoin

As the world's largest asset management company, BlackRock's Q1 13F filing shows it holds a significant amount of cryptocurrency-related stocks.

Among them, Coinbase (COIN) held approximately 16.75 million shares, valued at about $2.92 billion, with a slight reduction of about 333,000 shares compared to the previous quarter; Circle (CRCL) held approximately 5.06 million shares, valued at about $483 million, with a reduction of about 615,000 shares.

Strategy (MSTR) holdings increased to about 17.75 million shares, valued at about $2.22 billion, an increase of about 3.147 million shares; Ethereum treasury company Bitmine (BMNR) increased its holdings to about 11.08 million shares, valued at about $219 million, an increase of about 2.029 million shares.

The total market value of these four holdings is about $5.8 billion. Although this represents a limited proportion of its total holdings of approximately $57.2 trillion, the simultaneous increase in Strategy and Bitmine shows that BlackRock maintains recognition of both Bitcoin and Ethereum treasury narratives.

In terms of on-chain data, BlackRock's Bitcoin holdings increased from about 770,000 coins to approximately 785,000 coins during Q1, with a net purchase of about 15,000 coins. However, due to price declines, the market value fell from about $68 billion to approximately $51.8 billion. Ethereum holdings decreased from about 3.47 million coins to approximately 3.06 million coins, with a net outflow of about 410,000 coins, leading to an overall reduction of about $20.4 billion in the total market value of its crypto portfolio, primarily driven by price changes.

Additionally, IBIT's average daily trading volume in Q1 exceeded $3.2 billion, with net inflows recorded on 48 out of 62 trading days during the quarter. On January 27, a single-day inflow of about $1.3 billion set a daily record. However, changes in on-chain holdings essentially reflect the inflow and outflow of client funds through ETFs rather than BlackRock's own directional bets.

ARK Invest: Heavy Investment in Circle, Betting on the Stablecoin Sector

Cathie Wood's ARK Invest, as the issuer of the ARKB Bitcoin spot ETF, disclosed its holdings of cryptocurrency-related stocks in its 13F. The document shows that ARK increased its holdings in Circle (CRCL), Robinhood (HOOD), Bullish (BLSH), and Bitmine (BMNR) in Q1, while slightly reducing its holdings in Coinbase (COIN).

In terms of operational rhythm, ARK bought approximately $72 million worth of cryptocurrency-related stocks across its ARKF, ARKK, and ARKW funds when Bitcoin fell to around $75,000 in February, continuing its consistent strategy of buying on dips.

Among them, ARK's bet on Circle (CRCL) was significantly increased, with holdings rising to approximately 4.509 million shares, increasing its portfolio proportion from 2.18% to 3.34%. In Q2, ARK continues to increase its holdings in CRCL.

Circle's recently released Q1 financial report showed a year-on-year revenue growth of 20%, with USDC circulation rising to $77 billion and transaction volume increasing by 263%, further validating ARK's bet on the stablecoin sector.

Other Institutions Taking Action

Other institutions also have highlights. Asset management company WisdomTree launched a tokenized money market fund this quarter, driving a net inflow of $98 million into digital assets in Q1, bringing the total digital asset management scale to a record $867 million by the end of March.

Grayscale completed a rebalancing of its funds, introducing the Ethena token (ENA) into its DeFi fund with a weight of 13.59%, while removing Aerodrome Finance; in its smart contract platform fund, the weight of Ethereum holdings increased to 30.14%, surpassing Solana's 29.69%.

Chinese asset manager Dan Bin's Dongfang Hongyuan disclosed in its latest 13F that it increased its holdings in 31,700 shares of CRCL, valued at approximately $3.02 million.

Morgan Stanley has not yet disclosed its Q1 13F, but its Bitcoin ETF (MSBT), launched on April 8, has seen a cumulative net inflow of $193.6 million, with net assets reaching $239.6 million. In its first month, it recorded net inflows on 17 trading days and remained flat on 5 trading days, with no single-day net outflows.

Three Key Signals of Institutional Crypto Allocation

Reviewing these operations, three noteworthy trends can be observed.

First, institutional interest in Ethereum allocations is increasing. Jane Street, Wells Fargo, and JPMorgan all increased their exposure to Ethereum ETFs in Q1, coinciding with a general outflow phase in the market. This reflects that some institutions are beginning to view it as infrastructure for long-term positioning.

Second, the divergence on Bitcoin is more due to strategic differences rather than judgment differences. JPMorgan's systematic accumulation at low levels is a typical long-term allocation path; Jane Street's significant reduction, combined with its record quarterly revenue, is more aligned with a trading strategy adjustment.

Third, cryptocurrency-related stocks are becoming an unavoidable allocation option for institutions. With companies like Circle, Coinbase, and Strategy going public or continuing to expand, these stocks have evolved from marginal assets to core holdings for some institutions. ARK lists Circle as its sixth-largest holding, and Dongfang Hongyuan quickly built a position after Circle's IPO. Circle has risen over 50% since the beginning of the year, and the underlying stablecoin infrastructure logic is gaining recognition from more institutions.

In terms of specific asset selection, the differentiation is also evident. Galaxy Digital is the most divisive asset among institutions this quarter—Wells Fargo nearly liquidated its position, reducing by about 97%; JPMorgan also reduced its holdings; but Jane Street increased its holdings from about 17,000 shares to approximately 1.5 million shares, almost starting from scratch. Meanwhile, several institutions chose to increase their holdings in Strategy, using it as a proxy for Bitcoin stocks.

Now that Q2 is already more than halfway through, those institutions that continued to accumulate at low levels in Q1 are beginning to see validation.

In April, Bitcoin rose by about 11.87%, and Ethereum rose by about 7.3%. The Bitcoin spot ETF saw a net inflow of about $2.44 billion in April, reaching a near six-month high, with total management scale surpassing $100 billion for the first time. Among them, BlackRock's IBIT saw a net inflow of about $2.013 billion in a single month, and Morgan Stanley's MSBT saw a net inflow of about $194 million in its first month. Bitcoin has now returned above $80,000, and market risk appetite has somewhat recovered.

As of the time of writing, the 13F filings of large institutions and hedge funds such as Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and Millennium have not yet been released, but are expected to be disclosed in the next couple of days, at which point this picture of institutional holding differentiation will become more complete.