Arkham Intelligence has released new on-chain data revealing that six major entities collectively control approximately 4.25 million Bitcoin (BTC), representing roughly 21% of the total 21 million supply cap. This concentration significantly reduces the amount of Bitcoin actively available for trading in the market.
The largest holder remains Bitcoin's pseudonymous creator, Satoshi Nakamoto, with 1,096,358 BTC (worth about $75 billion). Arkham identified these coins using the "Patoshi Pattern," linking them to 22,000 mined blocks. Notably, these coins have remained unmoved since 2010.
The second-largest holder is cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase, with 993,069 BTC ($68 billion) held on-chain on behalf of itself and its custody clients. Asset management giant BlackRock follows closely with 761,801 BTC ($52 billion), the majority of which is tied to its spot Bitcoin ETF.
Corporate holdings are also substantial but sometimes obscured by custodial arrangements. Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy) reports total holdings of 714,644 BTC ($54 billion), but only 415,230 BTC appears under its name on-chain. The remainder is attributed to Fidelity Custody due to wallet grouping in its custodial system.
The U.S. Government holds 328,372 BTC ($22 billion), primarily from law enforcement seizures related to the Bitfinex hack, the Silk Road marketplace shutdown, and the LuBian Hacker address. Stablecoin issuer Tether holds 96,369 BTC ($6.5 billion) as part of its reserve management, making it the top private corporate holder.
The analysis highlights that the top four individual Bitcoin wallets by size are all exchange cold wallets. Binance owns the two largest, holding 249,000 and 157,000 BTC. Robinhood and Bitfinex follow with 141,000 BTC and 130,000 BTC respectively. These wallets store client funds, not the exchanges' own assets.
The report underscores a critical market reality: the real circulating supply of Bitcoin is well below the theoretical 21 million cap. An estimated 3.7 million BTC is considered permanently lost. When combined with Satoshi's dormant coins, government holdings, ETF reserves, and corporate treasuries, the amount of Bitcoin actually available for trading continues to shrink. Arkham also notes the existence of numerous inactive, billion-dollar wallets, indicating a significant portion of the supply is not participating in the active market.
