Harvard University’s endowment has made a massive leap into Bitcoin exposure, nearly tripling its stake in BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) during the third quarter of 2025. The Ivy League school’s Harvard Management Company (HMC) disclosed the investment in a filing to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Friday.
According to the document, the university held 6,813,612 shares of IBIT worth $442.8 million as of September 30, up 257% from the roughly 1.9 million shares reported in the previous quarter worth $116.6 million. The filing confirms that Harvard’s Bitcoin ETF exposure now accounts for just over 20% of its total publicly listed U.S. equity holdings, making it the largest declared position in the endowment’s portfolio.
Harvard’s IBIT holdings surpassed its stakes in major technology companies such as Microsoft, Amazon, Meta, and Alphabet, and even overtook its significant gold exposure through the SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) fund. IBIT now ranks as Harvard’s largest single public equity position and marks the most aggressive quarterly increase among its holdings.
“Super rare” for a university to buy an ETF
Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas noted the move’s significance, describing Harvard’s Bitcoin ETF commitment as a rare event in institutional investing.
“It’s super rare/difficult to get an endowment to bite on an ETF,” Balchunas said on Friday. “It’s as good a validation as an ETF can get.”
He emphasized that despite the increase, the position remains a mere 1% of Harvard’s $57 billion endowment. Nevertheless, it reflects a striking shift in sentiment toward digital assets among some of the most conservative institutional investors. “That said, half a billion is a mere 1% of total endowment,” Balchunas added.
The move places Harvard as the 16th-largest holder of IBIT, according to Bloomberg data, and provides further validation for spot Bitcoin ETFs, which have faced skepticism from traditional financial institutions.
COLLEGE: Harvard and Brown have bought $IBIT. Harvard is pretty sizable too, the 29th biggest holder out 1,300 holders. IMO Endowments are the hardest institution to hook, they rarely bite on ETFs.. h/t @TheBlock__ pic.twitter.com/M0LgfdRvnj
— Eric Balchunas (@EricBalchunas) August 8, 2025
Endowment expands gold and technology investments
Alongside its growing Bitcoin exposure, Harvard also increased its stake in gold. The endowment nearly doubled its holdings in SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) to 661,391 shares worth $235.1 million, up from 333,000 shares in August. The dual expansion into Bitcoin and gold suggests a multi-pronged approach toward hedging against inflation and diversifying away from U.S. equities.
Beyond alternative assets, Harvard increased its exposure to U.S. tech giants including Amazon, Microsoft, Meta, and Alphabet, while also adding new positions in Klarna, a buy-now, pay-later fintech valued at $16.8 million, and the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), worth $59.1 million. Such allocations indicate that the university continues to balance growth-focused equities with asset classes historically viewed as inflation protectors.
Bitcoin ETF market sees volatility amid Harvard’s expansion
Harvard’s enlarged Bitcoin position arrives during a turbulent period for the broader crypto market. Data from SoSoValue show spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded $1.11 billion in net outflows in the trading week ending Friday, reflecting investor caution as Bitcoin’s price fell below $100,000.
At last check, Bitcoin was trading below $95,000, after briefly plunging to $93,029 in the past 24 hours, its lowest level since April. The decline temporarily erased all of Bitcoin’s year-to-date gains. Despite this volatility, institutional interest in Bitcoin ETFs appears to be growing, with universities and sovereign wealth funds increasingly joining the ranks of holders.
Universities and global funds join the Bitcoin ETF wave
Harvard is not alone in its institutional move toward Bitcoin ETFs. Emory University, another major U.S. academic endowment, disclosed that it increased its holdings of Grayscale’s Bitcoin Mini Trust ETF (BTC) by 91%, raising its stake from 535,781 shares in June to over one million shares now worth $42.9 million. Emory also maintained its position in IBIT, with 4,450 shares unchanged from the last filing.
Further afield, an Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund, Al Warda Investments, more than doubled its IBIT stake to 7.96 million shares valued at roughly $517.6 million, signaling rising adoption among state-backed funds.
Industry observers say this wave of institutional investment underscores the mainstreaming of Bitcoin exposure through regulated ETFs, a stark contrast from just a few years ago when academic and institutional investors largely avoided the asset class.
Bitcoin’s price decline tests institutional confidence
Despite Harvard’s endorsement, Bitcoin faces ongoing price weakness amid macroeconomic headwinds. The cryptocurrency remains down over 24% from its all-time high of $126,000 set in October. IBIT, which is currently the world’s largest spot Bitcoin ETF with nearly $75 billion in assets under management, has also seen its valuation drop along with the underlying asset.
Harvard’s bold bet therefore comes at a time of heightened volatility, but ETF analysts view it as a strategic, long-term allocation rather than a speculative trade. As institutional trust in ETFs grows, Harvard’s move could inspire other university endowments and conservative funds to consider Bitcoin allocation through regulated investment vehicles.
Gunel Ismayilova
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