Harvard Administration Firm, which oversees the nation’s largest college endowment, has made a major transfer into bitcoin by disclosing a $116 million funding in BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin ETF.
Harvard’s bitcoin allocation revealed
Based on a current submitting with the U.S. Securities and Trade Fee, Harvard held roughly 1.9 million shares of the iShares Bitcoin ETF as of June 30, 2025.
This allocation made bitcoin the fifth-largest holding within the endowment, behind Microsoft, Amazon, Reserving Holdings, and Meta.
Harvard’s endowment stood at $53.2 billion as of mid-2024, outpacing different elite universities like Yale and Stanford.
Pattern amongst college endowments
Whereas Harvard’s allocation is notable, it follows a broader development.
Emory College reported publicity to digital asset funds in 2024, buying 2.7 million shares of the Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Belief.
Universities have been more and more contemplating bitcoin as a part of diversified portfolios.
Harvard’s endowment managers have beforehand emphasised the necessity to put together for volatility in asset allocations.
Robert Kaplan, a Harvard professor, defined the fund’s method:
“The endowment and its asset allocation is ready as much as anticipate you’re gonna have some unstable intervals.”
ETF approval and institutional demand
The U.S. SEC authorized the BlackRock Bitcoin ETF and ten different spot bitcoin funds in January 2024, sparking a surge in institutional curiosity.
The iShares Bitcoin ETF has since grown to over $86 billion in internet belongings, in accordance with BlackRock knowledge.
For up-to-date knowledge on institutional ETF holdings, see the BlackRock holdings tracker.
Choices enlargement could gasoline progress
The SEC not too long ago elevated the utmost variety of allowed choices contracts on ETFs—together with the iShares Bitcoin ETF—from 25,000 to 250,000.
Some analysts consider this enlargement might additional increase institutional demand and buying and selling volumes for bitcoin ETFs.