Market maker giant Jane Street is once again attracting intense attention in the crypto markets, with experts saying the company’s “next target” could now be Ethereum (ETH).
The speculation follows reports that Jane Street made several major adjustments to its positions during the week, following months of scrutiny related to alleged Bitcoin (BTC)-related trading manipulations.
From Bitcoin retirement to Ethereum expansion
Jane Street, one of Wall Street’s most active proprietary trading firms, would have reduced several Bitcoin-related holdings in the first quarter (Q1) of the year, while significantly increasing its exposure to Ethereum-related assets.
Jane Street’s position in BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) fell 71% quarter-over-quarter to approximately 5.9 million shares, with a reported value near $225 million.
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The company also reduced its stake in Fidelity’s Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC), where holdings fell about 60% to about 2 million shares, valued at nearly $115 million at the end of the quarter.
The reduction also extended to Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy). Jane Street Strategic assets went from approximately 968,000 shares in the fourth quarter of 2025 to approximately 210,000 shares at the end of the first quarter. The reported value fell from almost $146 million to around $27 million.
But while the company reduced its exposure to Bitcoin, it simultaneously strengthened its Ethereum footprint. Jane Street expanded its holdings in Ethereum ETFs, with positions in BlackRock’s iShares Ethereum Trust nearly doubling during the quarter.
The company also significantly increased Fidelity’s Ethereum fund. Combined additions in both EPF products were estimated at approximately $82 million.
Smaller derivative products, bigger impact?
The move is now being touted by analysts as a potential continuation of the same pattern that some observers associate with Jane Street’s previous Bitcoin-related controversies.
Analysts at Bull Theory suggested that the company behind “daily 10 a.m. Bitcoin dumping,” the same company that was allegedly prosecuted for insider trading in the $40 billion LUNA collapse, and the same company with $567 million frozen by Indian regulators could now target Ethereum.
Their central argument is that ETH might be easier to move than BTC, primarily due to market structure and scale. Bull Theory pointed out that open interest in Bitcoin futures stands at around $60 billion, while Ethereum’s is a little more than half, at around $34 billion.
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The thesis is that a smaller derivatives market can make it possible to influence prices with less capital. They also highlighted the relative size of the market, noting that ETH’s market cap is $273 billion, compared to BTC’s $1.6 trillion. According to their logic, the same amount of capital would create a 6x greater impact on ETH prices.
Analysts also argued that the Ethereum ETF market is still relatively early. They claimed that Bitcoin ETFs hold approximately 6.67% of all circulating BTC supply, while Ethereum ETFs’ penetration is lower, meaning there may not yet be the same institutional “demand floor” to absorb coordinated sales.
Their conclusion was clear: they believe the rotation to Ethereum is not occurring primarily because Jane Street is forecasting bullish fundamentals for ETH, but because Ethereum is “easier to move.”
At the time of writing, ETH was trading at around $2,292, with almost no change from Wednesday’s price. Meanwhile, other assets such as Bitcoin and XRP saw gains of around 2% and 4%, respectively, during the same period.
Featured image created with OpenArt, chart from TradingView.com
