In the first quarter of 2025, the amount of Bitcoin held by publicly traded companies saw a significant increase, with a rise of 16.1%, as reported by Bitwise, a crypto fund issuer. The total Bitcoin holdings of these companies reached approximately 688,000 BTC by the end of Q1. This increase was attributed to firms adding 95,431 BTC over the quarter, leading to a combined value of $56.7 billion, with each Bitcoin priced at $82,445.

Bitwise highlighted that the number of public companies holding Bitcoin grew to 79, with 12 of these firms acquiring the cryptocurrency for the first time during Q1. Among the notable first-time buyers was Hong Kong construction firm Ming Shing, whose subsidiary Lead Benefit purchased a total of 833 BTC, starting with a 500 BTC acquisition in January followed by an additional 333 BTC in February. Another newcomer to the Bitcoin market was the video platform Rumble, which purchased 188 BTC in mid-March.

One intriguing case was Hong Kong investment firm HK Asia Holdings Limited, which caused a stir by purchasing just one Bitcoin in February, resulting in a significant spike in its share price nearly doubling in value in a single trading day. Japanese investment firm Metaplanet also made waves with its purchase of 319 Bitcoin at an average price of 11.8 million yen ($82,770) per coin, increasing its total holdings to 4,525 Bitcoin worth $383.2 million.

Despite its significant Bitcoin holdings, Metaplanet spent close to $406 million acquiring its current stack, signaling a substantial investment in the digital asset. The company's stock (symbol 3350) experienced fluctuations in the Tokyo Stock Exchange, showing a 0.5% decline on April 15 after a 3.71% increase in the previous trading session. This latest Bitcoin purchase places Metaplanet as the tenth largest public company in terms of Bitcoin holdings, trailing behind companies like Block, Inc., led by Jack Dorsey, which holds 8,485 BTC.

At the time of reporting, Bitcoin was trading at around $84,440 and had remained relatively stable over the past 24 hours, showing a 2.3% increase since the end of Q1 on March 31. This stability followed a recent market drop, triggered by new global tariffs imposed by the US, which had temporarily pushed the price of Bitcoin below $75,000 on April 7.

Source: https://cointelegraph.com/news/bitcoin-holdings-public-firms-up-16-percent-q1-2025?utm_source=rss_feed&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss_partner_inbound