Bitcoin Drop Cost Abu Dhabi $118 Million: Will They Sell?

Two Abu Dhabi sovereign funds lost $118 million on their BlackRock Bitcoin ETF position last quarter. Neither sold a single share, new SEC filings show.

Mubadala Investment Company and the Abu Dhabi Investment Council together reported 22.94 million shares of the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) on June 30. That stake was worth $764 million, down from $881 million three months earlier.

Bitcoin Peaked in May Before June Erased the Quarter

Yet the quarter-on-quarter number hides a violent round trip. Bitcoin (BTC) opened April near $68,079 and climbed to $82,139 by May 10.

IBIT touched $46.47 the following day. At that mark, the two funds sat at roughly $1.07 billion, well above where they started the quarter. June wiped it out. Bitcoin shed 17.9% that month and ended June at $58,559. The stake closed the quarter $302 million below its May peak.

Both funds also file a Form 13F, the quarterly report large investors submit on their US-listed holdings. Mubadala filed on Aug. 14, one day after the Investment Council disclosed its own book.

The share counts match exactly between the two quarters. Mubadala kept 14.72 million shares. The Investment Council kept 8.22 million. Only the price moved.

However, the two funds feel that loss very differently. IBIT accounts for just 1.4% of Mubadala’s $34.77 billion US book, which chipmaker GlobalFoundries dominates at 94.7%. The ETF still ranks second on that list.

The Investment Council runs a far tighter portfolio. Its $274 million IBIT stake equals 38% of a $714 million book, the largest position the fund discloses.

Mubadala had also bought more IBIT in the first quarter, when Harvard cut its stake by 43%. Neither fund disclosed a second crypto product.

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Abu Dhabi Held While Other Institutions Trimmed

Elsewhere, institutional conviction cracked. Intesa Sanpaolo, Italy’s largest banking group, cut its IBIT holding by 93.7% and rotated toward staked Ethereum products.

Flow data tells a similar story. Spot Bitcoin funds shed 3,170 BTC in late July, while Ethereum funds drew inflows for a third straight week. Meanwhile, the average US spot Bitcoin ETF buyer sat 22% underwater at the end of July.

Prices have since steadied. Bitcoin reclaimed $65,000 in July and traded near $62,957 on Saturday, valuing the network at $1.26 trillion. That leaves the asset almost 50% below its record of $126,080, set on Oct. 6, 2025.

Sovereign wealth funds answer to a different clock than banks or endowments. Their mandates run for decades, and one weak quarter rarely forces a decision.

Quarterly filings capture a snapshot, not daily conviction. Sitting through a $302 million swing without trimming a share signals a long horizon rather than a trade. November’s disclosure will show whether Abu Dhabi’s patience outlasted the summer.