These Eight Countries Have Bitcoin Holdings
Did you know that more than 500,000 $BTC as of November 27, 2024, are owned by national governments around the globe, according to Bitcoin Treasuries?
Table of Contents
Which Governments Own Bitcoin?
USA
According to Forbes, the U.S. government has $BTC because of seizures and confiscations from bad actors, unlicensed entities, and unregistered transactions.
- Total Bitcoin Holdings: 207,189
- Value in U.S. Dollars: $19.98 Billion’
China
Together with 833,000 $ETH, China’s token holdings are from the PlusToken scam of 2019, Benzinga estimated.
- Total Bitcoin Holdings: 194,000
- Value in U.S. Dollars: $18.71 Billion
United Kingdom
Similar to the first two countries, U.K.’s $BTC holdings also came from asset seizure, when U.K. police seized four devices in 2018 that contained $BTC from an investment fraud operation in China, as per CoinDesk.
- Total Bitcoin Holdings: 61,000
- Value in U.S. Dollars: $5.88 Billion
Ukraine
It is not the national government that owns $BTC. According to Bitcoin Magazine, public officials from the Ministry of Defense and the National Police are the largest number of owners of cryptocurrencies in the country.
- Total Bitcoin Holdings: 48,741.8
- Value in U.S. Dollars: $4.70 Billion
Royal Government of Bhutan
Data from Arkham shows that the Royal Government of Bhutan buys and trades $BTC itself.
- Total Bitcoin Holdings: 12,211
- Value in U.S. Dollars: $1.18 Billion
El Salvador
The country surprised the world when it bought 400 $BTC in September 2021. Since then, El Salvador has continued to buy the asset. According to the president, El Salvador has never sold any $BTC.
- Total Bitcoin Holdings: 5,942
- Value in U.S. Dollars: $568.26 Million
Finland
It is not clear if Finland has $BTC because it has purchased the asset before or from confiscated ones. However, during the war with Russia and Ukraine, Finland said that it would donate “tens of millions” of euros to Ukraine by selling the seized $BTC by Customs officials during criminal investigations
- Total Bitcoin Holdings: 1,981
- Value in U.S. Dollars: $189.45 Million
Georgia
In 2018, Georgia proudly announced that it would be having a Bitcoin mining facility. However, since February, its holding has plateaued to 66 $BTC.
- Total Bitcoin Holdings: 66
- Value in U.S. Dollars: $6.31 Million
Germany
In January 2024, the German government (or technically one of the German states) had $BTC. However, months after, in July, it sold all its holdings.
- Total Bitcoin Holdings: 0.0
- Value in U.S. Dollars: $0.0
When Philippines?
In the past, this website published the following feature articles from Atty. Rafael Padilla:
- Counterweight: The Case for Bitcoin as Central Bank Reserve Asset by Atty. Rafael Padilla
- Investing in Bitcoin with Maharlika Fund? Crypto Lawyer Weighs In
In a post on Twitter, Florin Hilbay, educator and former Solicitor General of the Philippines said:
This article is published on BitPinas: These Countries Have Bitcoin Holdings
