Who Owns the Most Bitcoin?

The maximum supply of bitcoins is capped at 21 million. This blog post will examine how bitcoins are distributed across various categories and Bitcoin addresses. Additionally, the text will reveal the largest bitcoin holders, including individuals, companies, countries, and ETFs.

              
Bitcoin – A Scarce Investment
Bitcoin is the first and largest cryptocurrency on the market. In recent years, Bitcoin has been referred to by several major entities and individuals as digital gold. This comparison highlights Bitcoin’s role as a store of value, akin to gold. Both Bitcoin and gold share scarcity, which is central to their value retention. Bitcoin’s scarcity has been a key reason why millions of actors, from private individuals to large companies, have started accumulating bitcoin holdings.
Bitcoin’s scarcity refers to the maximum supply of 21 million bitcoins. This limit is a result of Bitcoin halving, which occurs approximately every four years after 210,000 Bitcoin blocks are mined. Halving refers to the reduction in the number of new bitcoins created with each mined block. As of September 2024, approximately 19.75 million bitcoins are in circulation, representing about 94% of the 21 million maximum supply.
Bitcoin Distribution by Category
The current distribution of 21 million bitcoins is as follows:
Individuals: 13 million bitcoins
Lost: 3.7 million bitcoins
Companies (including Bitcoin miners): 1.5 million bitcoins
To be mined: 1.25 million bitcoins
ETFs and other funds: 1 million bitcoins
Governments: 0.55 million bitcoins
 
Bitcoin Distribution by Address
The figures below show the percentage of Bitcoin addresses that hold at least a certain amount of bitcoin. A Bitcoin address is typically assumed to represent a single Bitcoin investor. According to data from the blockchain analytics IntoTheBlock, there are approximately 54.3 million Bitcoin addresses. As seen in the figures, for instance, 23.39% of Bitcoin addresses hold at least 0.01 bitcoins. This means that owning 0.01 bitcoins puts you ahead of 76.61% (100% - 23.39% = 76.61%) of Bitcoin addresses.
0.001 bitcoins: 44.77%
0.01 bitcoins: 23.39%
0.1 bitcoins: 8.45%
1 bitcoin: 1.87%
10 bitcoins: 0.28%
100 bitcoins: 0.03%
 
Largest Bitcoin Holders
Next, let's take a look at the largest bitcoin holders among individuals, companies, ETFs, and countries.
Individuals
Satoshi Nakamoto: 1.1 million bitcoins
The unknown founder of Bitcoin, who used the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto, is believed to own around 1.1 million bitcoins. Nakamoto mined these bitcoins in Bitcoin’s early days, and almost all of them have remained untouched since they were mined. With 1.1 million bitcoins, Nakamoto is the largest individual Bitcoin holder.
Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss: 70,000 bitcoins
The founders of the cryptocurrency exchange Gemini, Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, who also were involved in the early days of Facebook, are believed to own around 70,000 bitcoins. These bitcoins were purchased in Bitcoin’s early years at an average price of about $10.
Tim Draper: 29,656 bitcoins
American venture capitalist Tim Draper is believed to own at least 29,656 bitcoins. Draper purchased these bitcoins in 2014 at an average price of about $630 from U.S. authorities who had seized them in the Silk Road criminal case.
Michael Saylor: 17,732 bitcoins
American entrepreneur and MicroStrategy founder Michael Saylor revealed in November 2021 that he owns 17,732 bitcoins. These bitcoins were likely purchased during 2020–2021.
Companies
MicroStrategy: 244,800 bitcoins
The U.S. company MicroStrategy, which offers business intelligence solutions, cloud-based services, and mobile software, owns 244,800 bitcoins according to its statements. This makes MicroStrategy the largest bitcoin-holding company. The company made its first bitcoin purchase in August 2020 and has continued to acquire more bitcoins several times since then. MicroStrategy’s bitcoins were bought at an average price of around $38,600.
Block.one: 164,000 bitcoins
The company behind the EOS cryptocurrency, Block.one, reportedly owns 164,000 bitcoins. Most of Block.one’s bitcoins were acquired several years ago, as the company already held about 140,000 bitcoins in May 2019.
Tether International Limited: 75,354 bitcoins
Tether International Limited, the company behind the USDT stablecoin, owns 75,354 bitcoins according to its statements. These bitcoins were acquired through regular purchases, which began in late 2022.
Marathon Digital Holdings: 26,200 bitcoins
U.S. Bitcoin mining company Marathon Digital Holdings owns 26,200 bitcoins according to its statements. These bitcoins were acquired through mining and purchases.
Tesla: 9,720 bitcoins
The U.S. company Tesla, known for its electric vehicles and sustainable energy solutions, owns 9,720 bitcoins. Tesla announced in February 2021 that it had purchased approximately 43,000 bitcoins at an average price of just under $35,000. However, Tesla sold most of the bitcoins it bought in 2021 during the years 2021–2022.
ETFs
BlackRock: 357,548 bitcoins
Grayscale: 221,841 bitcoins
Fidelity Investments: 174,926 bitcoins
Ark Invest / 21Shares: 45,008 bitcoins
Bitwise: 37,224 bitcoins
Countries
United States: 213,246 bitcoins
The United States owns 213,246 bitcoins, which were seized in various criminal cases.
China: 190,000 bitcoins
China owns 190,000 bitcoins, which were seized in 2019 from the PlusToken scam.
United Kingdom: 61,000 bitcoins
The United Kingdom owns 61,000 bitcoins, which were seized in 2021 in connection with an investment scam in China.
Bhutan: 13,029 bitcoins
The South Asian country of Bhutan owns 13,029 bitcoins, which are the result of mining activity, which has accelerated especially since the beginning of 2023.
El Salvador: 5,876 bitcoins
El Salvador, the Central American country that was first to make Bitcoin legal tender in September 2021, holds 5,876 bitcoins. El Salvador began purchasing bitcoins in September 2021 and is currently growing its bitcoin holdings by at least 1 bitcoin every day. You can track El Salvador’s bitcoin holdings on the government’s website.
Summary
In recent years, Bitcoin has increasingly been called digital gold, attracting numerous individuals and companies to invest in this scarce asset. Most bitcoins are currently owned by private individuals, with Bitcoin’s founder Satoshi Nakamoto being the largest individual holder, possessing about 1.1 million bitcoins. While surpassing Nakamoto as the largest bitcoin holder is nearly impossible for any individual or company, it is feasible to aim to own more bitcoin than over 90 or 98 percent of Bitcoin addresses. For instance, owning 0.1 bitcoin puts you ahead of over 90 percent of Bitcoin addresses, while owning 1 bitcoin puts you ahead of over 98 percent.
The ownership information presented in this blog text is based on data available at the time of the blog’s publication (September 17, 2024).

Ville Viitaharju
Cryptocurrency specialist