Institutional investors and wealth managers want to see more publicly listed companies holding Bitcoin as a reserve asset on their balance sheets, according to new global research.
The study was carried out by London-based Nickel Digital Asset Management, Europe’s leading digital assets hedge fund manager founded by alumni of Bankers Trust, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan.
It surveyed institutional investors and wealth managers and found nearly half (49%) believe 10% or more of S&P 500 listed companies will adopt Bitcoin on their balance sheets. Slightly more than half (51%) predict between 5% and 10% will have Bitcoin on their balance sheets.
Data from BitcoinTreasuries.net shows the number of bitcoin held by companies has increased by up to 170% in the past year with firms holding about 3.2% of all bitcoins that can be issued. Software group Strategy – previously known as Micro Strategy – accounts for the vast majority of holdings but London-listed companies as well as firms in Japan and France are also investing, with some branching out into other cryptocurrencies.
Nickel’s research with institutional investors and wealth managers in the US, UK, Germany, Switzerland, Singapore, Brazil and the United Arab Emirates with organisations who collectively manage around $1.1 trillion in assets found strong support for publicly listed companies holding Bitcoin as a reserve asset on their balance sheet.
Around nine out of 10 (86%) favour the idea with 18% saying they strongly favour it. Just 1% are opposed to publicly-listed companies holding Bitcoin as a reserve asset while 13% are neutral on the subject.
Anatoly Crachilov, CEO and Founding Partner at Nickel Digital, said:
“We are witnessing the unfolding stages of a structural shift in corporate treasury management. The growing number of public companies allocating to Bitcoin reflects not speculation, but a strategic response to fiat debasement, balance sheet optimisation, and shareholder alignment.
“What began as a bold outlier move is fast becoming a credible treasury strategy – validated not only by MicroStrategy’s high-profile pivot, but also by an expanding cohort of global firms following suit. Institutional investors are clearly anticipating this trend to accelerate, and we believe Bitcoin will increasingly feature as a digital reserve asset in modern corporate finance.”
