Harvard University’s investment arm has quietly made one of its boldest moves into the digital asset space, disclosing a substantial position in a spot Bitcoin ETF that now outweighs its gold exposure.
A U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filing for the second quarter revealed that Harvard Management Company (HMC) holds just over 1.9 million shares of BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), valued at nearly $117 million.
The allocation represents roughly 8% of the $1.4 billion in U.S.-listed assets reported, ranking Bitcoin alongside Harvard’s largest public holdings, which include Microsoft, Amazon, and Alphabet.
The new position pushes Bitcoin ahead of gold in Harvard’s portfolio, with its SPDR Gold Trust stake coming in at about $102 million during the same period. While the filing covers only U.S.-listed assets — not the full breadth of Harvard’s endowment — it signals a shift toward treating Bitcoin as a core holding rather than an experimental play.
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Harvard’s engagement with crypto isn’t new. The university invested in blockchain-focused venture funds in 2018, took part in early token offerings like Blockstack’s STX sale, and was rumored in 2021 to have purchased crypto directly via exchanges.
Now, by adding IBIT to its official disclosures, Harvard has moved Bitcoin firmly into the company of its blue-chip equity and traditional safe-haven assets — a sign that the world’s top institutions may be deepening their embrace of the asset class.
Kosta Gushterov
Kosta has been working in the crypto industry for over 4 years. He strives to present different perspectives on a given topic and enjoys the sector for its transparency and dynamism. In his work, he focuses on balanced coverage of events and developments in the crypto space, providing information to his readers from a neutral perspective.
