Harvard Endowment Expands IBIT Stake, Overtakes Google in Public Portfolio

Published: 2026-02-10 12:46:45 |

Harvard University’s endowment materially increased exposure to Bitcoin by building a position in BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) in 2025 and subsequently expanding it — filings indicate an initial ~$116.7m stake that was later roughly tripled to a holding now estimated in the hundreds of millions, making IBIT Harvard’s largest ETF position and larger than Alphabet (Google) in its public portfolio. Other U.S. university endowments, including Brown and Emory, have disclosed multi‑million dollar allocations to Bitcoin ETFs and trusts (IBIT, Grayscale’s Bitcoin Mini Trust), signalling broader institutional adoption among endowments. The move coincides with Bitcoin trading near $68,400 (intraday volatility < $70k) while Ethereum and Solana also rallied. For traders, this public allocation from a prominent Ivy League endowment increases institutional legitimacy for spot Bitcoin ETFs, can lift demand and fund flows into IBIT and related products, and may tighten short‑term liquidity while supporting longer‑term adoption. Primary keywords: Bitcoin ETF, Harvard endowment, IBIT. Secondary keywords included naturally: institutional adoption, university endowments, BlackRock iShares, Grayscale, Bitcoin price, crypto allocation.

Bullish

Public confirmation that a major institutional investor (Harvard endowment) has built and expanded a material position in a spot Bitcoin ETF increases demand-side credibility for IBIT and spot Bitcoin exposure more broadly. Short-term effects: the announcement can trigger flows into IBIT and similar ETFs as other institutions or allocators follow suit, tightening liquidity and providing upward price pressure on BTC. Medium-to-long term: repeated, large institutional allocations by endowments and funds signal sustained adoption, encouraging continued ETF inflows and potentially reducing volatility as market depth grows around spot ETF shares. The presence of multiple university endowments taking positions (Brown, Emory) amplifies the credibility signal. Risks and caveats: the buying is concentrated in an ETF product, not direct BTC holdings, so mechanical selling from ETF redemptions or macro shocks could still cause downside; nonetheless, the net impact of this news on BTC price is likely positive given increased institutional demand and legitimacy.