In a major move that further legitimizes Ether (ETH), the Harvard Management Company reduced its exposure to the iShares Bitcoin Trust holdings in Q4 2025. Instead, the entity has opened a new position in the iShares Ethereum Trust.
Ethereum, not Bitcoin – Harvard says
According to a 13F filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Harvard has trimmed its BTC exposure for ETH. Notably, Harvard Management Company sold more than 20% of its Bitcoin-based exchange-traded fund (ETF) holdings.
Interestingly, Harvard Management Company has established its first position in an ETH-focused ETF, suggesting a steady pivot from BTC toward the leading smart contract platform.
As of December 31, 2025, Harvard’s investment manager held 5.35 million shares of BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust, valued at approximately $266 million at the prevailing market prices.
This is lower than the 6.81 million iShares Bitcoin Trust shares the entity held in the quarter ending September 30, 2025. These shares were then valued at $442.8 million, as BTC traded close to all-time high (ATH) territory at the time.
During Q4 2025, Harvard opened a new $86.8 million position in BlackRock’s iShares Ethereum Trust, buying 3.87 million shares. It is worth highlighting that Harvard’s decision to gain exposure to ETH came during a period of high volatility in the crypto market.
That said, despite the reduction in exposure to BTC ETF, the premier cryptocurrency by reported market cap remains Harvard’s largest publicly disclosed equity holding as of December 31, 2025.
Other holdings forming the endowment’s constituents include Alphabet, Microsoft, and Amazon. Harvard’s investment in BTC remains under immense scrutiny. Andrew F. Siegel, emeritus professor of finance at the University of Washington, dubbed Harvard’s exposure to BTC “risky.”
Siegel emphasized that the flagship cryptocurrency is down more than 22% since the beginning of 2026. They added that the fall in BTC’s value is “partly due to its lack of intrinsic value.”
ETH sentiment bearish but there’s still hope
Over the past few months, the overall market sentiment toward ETH has been strongly bearish. Recent analysis shows that the sentiment is at its most negative level since 2022. Recently, the Ethereum taker buy/sell ratio fell to a three-month low, indicating that there may be more pain ahead for ETH investors.
However, some hope persists. Recent analysis of ETH whale wallets shows that large holders are accumulating the digital asset at current prices, anticipating a bullish impulse in the short to medium term.
