Who Holds the Most Bitcoin? January 2025 Update
The world’s wealthiest billionaires? In crypto, we care more about who owns the most Bitcoin. From legendary whales to mysterious accounts, companies, and governments, the list is quite intriguing.
On this page
- Biggest Bitcoin Holders in January 2025
- Satoshi Nakamoto – 1.1 Million Bitcoins
- Michael Saylor – 17,732 Bitcoins
- MicroStrategy – 461,000 Bitcoins
- MARA Holdings – 44,893 Bitcoins
- Mt. Gox – 36,085 Bitcoins
- BlackRock – 572,228 Bitcoins
- Governments Owning the Most Bitcoin
- The Always-Changing List of Bitcoin Owners
In this article, we’ll spill the tea on who’s holding all the coins.
Biggest Bitcoin Holders in January 2025
Knowing who holds the largest share of Bitcoin out of its scarce 21 million supply isn’t just about curiosity. It can be super useful for market analysis.
For example, when a major Bitcoin holder decides to move or sell their assets, it can trigger speculation and impact market trends.
Potential selloffs may impact the price, and even the mere idea of such a move can cause panic among some investors.
However, knowing how much Bitcoin everyone owns is not easy. While Bitcoin transactions are public and recorded on the blockchain, they’re pseudonymous and represented as strings of numbers and letters.
This means addresses don’t directly reveal the identities of their owners.
On the other hand, things work differently for corporate companies and governments due to reports, public filings, and other legal requirements.
Here’s a look at some of the biggest Bitcoin holders, based on onchain data and public disclosures.
Satoshi Nakamoto – 1.1 Million Bitcoins
Mysterious Satoshi Nakamoto, Bitcoin creator and the one who mined its first block kicks off our list.
Here’s how Bitcoin works: miners validate blocks and get paid in newly minted coins. Every 4 years, the reward for mining a block gets cut in half.
When Bitcoin was first created, mining was super easy. Few people knew about it, and there was barely any competition.
Satoshi mined up to block 54,316 and got 50 Bitcoins for each one. In total, he ended up with 1,125,150 BTC.
Those coins have never been touched.
On April 23, 2011, Satoshi disappeared after sending a farewell email to developer Mike Hearn, stating: “I've moved on to other things.
Since then, nobody has heard from him.
People still talk about what might happen if Nakamoto ever comes back and decides to sell his coins, which would be worth over $107.9 billion right now.
Michael Saylor – 17,732 Bitcoins
MicroStrategy founder and Executive Chairman Michael Saylor is one of the most vocal Bitcoin advocates. Through his interviews, Twitter account, and business strategy, Saylor brings up Bitcoin wherever he goes.
His Twitter bio states he’s a Bitcoin Hodler.
In October 2020, Saylor tweeted that he owns 17,732 coins, purchased at an average price of $9,882.
During an August 2024 interview with Bloomberg, Saylor revealed he hasn’t sold any of those coins and continues to buy more Bitcoin.
This makes Saylor one of the largest individual Bitcoin holders, with his coins now worth over $1.8 billion.
Bitcoin Whale Watch: Based on data from BitInfoCharts, there are 4 Bitcoin addresses holding more than 100,000 Bitcoins, 92 addresses holding more than 10,000 Bitcoins, and 1943 addresses with more than 1000 Bitcoins at the time of writing.
MicroStrategy – 461,000 Bitcoins
Michael Saylor’s MicroStrategy is the leading public company in terms of Bitcoin holdings. The company has steadily added to its stash over the years.
Their most recent purchase was on January 21, 2025, when they acquired 11,000 BTC for about $1.1 billion, paying an average of $101,191 per coin.
In total, MicroStrategy now holds an impressive 461,000 Bitcoins. The company has invested around $29.3 billion to build this position, with an average purchase price of $63,610 per Bitcoin.
As of now, its Bitcoin holdings are valued at more than $48.4 billion.
MARA Holdings – 44,893 Bitcoins
The largest publicly traded Bitcoin mining company, MARA Holdings, has a reserve of 44,893 Bitcoins, worth over $4 billion at today’s prices.
Their latest big purchase was on December 10, 2024, when they bought 11,774 BTC at an average price of $96,000 per coin.
MARA grows its Bitcoin stash in two ways: mining and buying. In 2024, they mined 9,457 Bitcoins and announced plans to stick with this strategy to boost returns.
At the same time, MARA loaned a portion of its Bitcoin to third parties to generate additional returns for its stakeholders.
Mt. Gox – 36,085 Bitcoins
Now-defunct crypto exchange Mt. Gox holds over 36,000 Bitcoins, worth more than $3.7 billion, according to Arkham Intelligence. The exchange collapsed in 2014, revealing that 750,000 of its customers' BTC and around 100,000 of its own BTC were stolen.
Mt. Gox is still in the process of returning assets to customers, with the repayment plan extended to October 2025.
According to data from Mt. Gox Balance Bot, the Mt. Gox trustee balance currently holds 12,005 BTC across different addresses.
Any large movements of assets from its wallets often stir up speculation and could impact the Bitcoin price.
BlackRock – 572,228 Bitcoins
Top asset management company BlackRock holds a massive amount of Bitcoin through its iShares Bitcoin Trust. This means it doesn’t directly own Bitcoin but manages the asset through its ETF product.
On January 22, 2025, the company bought $600 million worth of Bitcoin, bringing the total value of its Bitcoin holdings to over $60 billion.
Governments Owning the Most Bitcoin
Over the years, a fair amount of Bitcoin has ended up in government hands, either from criminal investigations or direct purchases. Some countries acquired Bitcoin by seizing it during legal cases, while others simply decided to buy it.
The United States holds the most Bitcoin, with 198,109 coins worth over $21 billion. This stash includes Bitcoins confiscated from illegal activities, such as the notorious Silk Road marketplace, where authorities seized over 50,000 BTC.
President Trump suggested creating a Bitcoin strategic reserve to put these coins to use.
Next in line is the United Kingdom, with over 61,000 Bitcoins.
The Royal Government of Bhutan is among the top 3 with more than 11,522 Bitcoins. The kingdom began using its hydroelectric resources to power Bitcoin mining operations in 2019. Later, it also started investing in cryptocurrency through direct purchases. The government uses Bitcoin as part of a broader strategy to diversify its national assets.
Of course, we have El Salvador on our list with its 6,046 Bitcoins worth more than $634 million. The country made its latest purchase on January 20, acquiring 11 Bitcoins.
Germany used to be a major Bitcoin holder, too. However, between June and July 2024, it sold nearly 50,000 BTC at $53,000 per coin – right before Bitcoin prices skyrocketed. Now, the German government holds just 0.01 BTC, worth $718.
The Always-Changing List of Bitcoin Owners
The list of Bitcoin’s biggest holders is always in flux – some stay, some go, some buy, and some sell. From mysterious figures like Satoshi Nakamoto to massive companies like MicroStrategy, asset managers like BlackRock, and anonymous whales, each adds a different layer to the Bitcoin ecosystem.
The question of “who’s holding the most” will always carry a bit of mystery, and that’s what makes it so interesting to follow.
In the end, with names, rankings, and strategies always in flux, this list is one to keep an eye on.
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