Public Companies Embrace Bitcoin: An Overview
Just a few years ago, the idea of publicly traded corporations adding Bitcoin to their balance sheets was considered laughable—too volatile, too fringe for serious businesses. That taboo was shattered in August and September 2020 when business software firm MicroStrategy (now Strategy) purchased $425 million worth of Bitcoin. Payments processor Block and electric vehicle maker Tesla soon followed. According to BitcoinTreasuries, public companies now hold 3.3% of the total 21 million BTC supply. Here are the top 10 holders as of this writing in April 2025.
1. Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy)
Strategy, a business analytics platform turned Bitcoin treasury company, rebranded in February 2025. Co-founder Michael Saylor cited the “power and positivity” of the name. The firm aggressively accumulated Bitcoin, now holding 531,644 BTC—worth over $45 billion and more than 2% of all Bitcoin that will ever be issued. Saylor once said he was buying $1,000 of Bitcoin every second. In Q1 2024 earnings call, he claimed the Bitcoin strategy delivered 10x to 30x performance versus peers. Saylor personally holds 17,732 BTC (over $1.6 billion) and still holds them as of September 2024, a stark reversal from his 2013 claim that Bitcoin's days were numbered. Strategy plans to raise $42 billion to buy more Bitcoin and has pitched similar strategies to other companies like Microsoft (shareholders voted against). Saylor famously said the firm will be “buying the top forever.”
2. Marathon Digital Holdings Inc.
Bitcoin miner Marathon Digital holds 47,531 BTC (worth over $4 billion) according to its March 31, 2025 investor update. Originally a patent holding firm (often called a patent troll), it pivoted to crypto mining with the goal of building North America's largest Bitcoin mining operation at one of the lowest energy costs. As of July 2024, Marathon operates more than 250,000 miners producing 31.5 EH/s. Following the 2024 halving, the company accelerated expansion plans. Its Q3 2024 revenue rose 35% to $132 million. Marathon recently raised nearly $2 billion via convertible notes, mostly used to buy Bitcoin.
3. Riot Platforms, Inc.
U.S.-based miner Riot Platforms holds 19,223 BTC (worth about $1.6 billion). The Nasdaq-listed company's valuation surged from under $200 million in 2020 to over $6 billion in 2021, leading to aggressive expansion. In April 2021, it spent $650 million on a one-gigawatt mining facility in Texas, later expanded. It rebranded to Riot Platforms in 2023 to diversify. In 2024, Riot warned shareholders that the halving might not improve profitability; its stock traded around $18 earlier in the year, fell to under $10 from August to late October, then rebounded after Trump's election win. Riot also attempted a hostile takeover of Bitfarms before reaching a settlement.
4. CleanSpark
CleanSpark, a U.S. Bitcoin miner, holds 11,869 BTC as of March 31, 2025 (worth ~$1 billion). CEO Zach Bradford said holdings topped 12,000 in April 2025 but a firm number was not confirmed. Before the 2024 halving, CleanSpark acquired three mining facilities in Mississippi for $19.8 million, adding 2.4 EH/s, and added a third facility in Dalton, Georgia with 0.8 EH/s. In June 2024, it mined 417 BTC in May, claiming to have “outperformed industry expectations” in its first full month post-halving. Plans include expanding to a Wyoming site. CFO Gary Vecchiarelli explained in February 2025: “Why buy Bitcoin at current spot prices when we can mine it for $34,000?”
5. Tesla
Electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla joined the Bitcoin ranks in December 2020 with a $1.5 billion investment. According to its December 2024 10-K, it holds 11,509 BTC. After its initial purchase, Tesla sold 10% of its holdings in Q1 2021 to “prove liquidity.” CEO Elon Musk had discussed Bitcoin on Twitter, and MicroStrategy's Saylor offered to share his “playbook,” arguing it would be a “$100 billion favor” to shareholders. Tesla accepted Bitcoin payments in March 2021 but abruptly stopped two months later. Arkham Intelligence suggests that acceptance period boosted holdings to 11,509 from the previously reported 9,720. Musk is open to increasing Bitcoin holdings but is better known as a Dogecoin advocate. Tesla accepts Dogecoin for some merchandise, and Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has fueled meme coin movement.
6. Hut 8 Corp
Canadian miner Hut 8 holds 10,264 BTC (worth ~$872 million). Listed on Nasdaq in June 2021 (ticker HUT), it aims to grow shareholder value by increasing Bitcoin holdings. It generates fiat income by leveraging its self-mined Bitcoin via yield arrangements with prime brokerages. In November 2023, Hut 8 merged with US Bitcoin, rebranding as an “energy infrastructure company targeting Bitcoin mining and data centers.” Its six sites across Alberta, Texas, and New York have 7.5 EH/s of self-mining capacity. In June 2024, it announced a $150 million investment to expand AI compute capabilities.
7. Galaxy Digital Holdings
Crypto merchant bank Galaxy Digital holds approximately 11,242 BTC (worth ~$954 million). Founded by Michael Novogratz in January 2018, it provides asset management and digital infrastructure to institutions. Novogratz is a vocal Bitcoin advocate, predicting in March 2024 that Bitcoin would never dip below $50,000 again and later forecasting a rally to $100,000 by year-end. Galaxy Digital is one of the managers of a U.S. spot Bitcoin ETF approved by the SEC in January 2024. Novogratz called Trump's presidential win “the most important day for crypto.”
8. Block, Inc.
Block (parent of Square) invested $50 million in Bitcoin in October 2020, alongside Tesla igniting institutional interest. As of end 2024, it holds 8,485 BTC (worth ~$721 million). CEO Jack Dorsey is a passionate advocate—running his own Bitcoin node and calling the whitepaper “poetry.” Block has invested in Bitcoin technology, launching its own wallet and developing a mining ASIC chip. In April 2024, Square enabled businesses using Cash App to automatically convert a portion of daily sales into Bitcoin. In May 2024, Block announced it will reinvest 10% of profits from Bitcoin-related products/services into BTC via a dollar-cost averaging program.
9. Coinbase Global, Inc.
Coinbase, the best-known crypto exchange, went public via direct listing in April 2021. In February 2021, it disclosed holding $230 million in Bitcoin. According to its latest 10-K, it holds 6,885 BTC for investment (worth ~$585 million). The stock surged after the 2024 presidential election but has since declined. Coinbase continues to innovate, launching its own wrapped Bitcoin product cbBTC and restarting Bitcoin lending services.
10. Metaplanet
Tokyo-listed Metaplanet, nicknamed the “Asian Strategy,” now holds 4,525 BTC (worth ~$384 million) after its latest April 2025 purchase. Outside Bitcoin, it owns a hotel being rebranded as the “Bitcoin Hotel” and claims to be Japan's first and only publicly listed Bitcoin treasury company. Following Strategy's model, it has increased holdings more than 10x from under 400 BTC in September 2024 to over 4,500 in April 2025. It aims to reach 10,000 BTC by end of 2025. In March 2025, the company added President Donald Trump's son Eric Trump to its Strategic Advisory Board.
Editor's note: This article was first published in July 2022 and last updated on April 17, 2025. Edited by Andrew Hayward.