Bitcoin has garnered attention as one of the most rewarding stores of value in recent years, with institutional adoption reaching new heights this year. One of these historic Bitcoin acquisitions was made by Harvard University, arguably the most prestigious academic institution in the world.
Earlier in August, Harvard disclosed an investment portfolio containing $117 million worth of shares of BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) at the end of the second quarter. According to its latest disclosure, the university’s exposure to BTC almost tripled in the last quarter.
BlackRock’s IBIT becomes Harvard’s largest investment
In its latest 13F filing, Harvard University revealed that it owns 6,813,612 shares of BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), valued at approximately $443 million as of September 30.
This additional acquisition highlights the institution’s expansive capital allocation strategy, which also saw its SPDR Gold Trust (GLD) holdings reach 661,391 shares (worth approximately $235 million) in the third quarter of 2025.
Notably, Harvard’s current holding of the leading BTC spot ETF represents a 257% increase from the 1,906,000 shares reported in June. Currently, BlackRock’s exchange-traded fund is the largest investment among the university’s reported holdings.
Although IBIT’s current position represents only a small portion of Harvard’s $57 billion endowment, it is large enough to make the university the 16th largest holder of IBIT. As we inferred previously, stories of institutional adoption like this add credence to Bitcoin’s status as a strategic reserve asset and the growing demand for exchange-traded funds.
Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas wrote on X:
It’s very rare/difficult to get an endowment to bite into an ETF – especially at Harvard or Yale, it’s as good a validation as an ETF can be. That said, half a billion represents only 1% of the total endowment. Big enough to rank 16th among IBIT holders.
BlackRock Bitcoin ETF Records Biggest Exit Day
US-based Bitcoin ETFs have suffered a decline in investor demand in recent weeks, with last week being particularly disappointing. According to the latest market data, exchange-traded funds saw a total net outflow of $1.1 billion last week.
Leading these withdrawals was BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust, which is currently experiencing a three-day streak of withdrawals. Data from SoSoValue shows that $463.1 million was withdrawn from the BTC ETF on Friday, November 14.
As of this writing, BlackRock’s IBIT is still the largest spot Bitcoin ETF, with net assets worth approximately $74.98 billion.
The price of BTC on the daily timeframe | Source: BTCUSDT chart on TradingView
Featured image by Rick Friedman/AFP via Getty Images, chart by TradingView
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