The government of Bhutan has transferred Bitcoin (BTC) worth $63 million to three separate wallets on March 24, as revealed by Onchain Lens through data acquired from Arkham Intelligence.
Currently, one of these wallets possesses 600 BTC, equivalent to roughly $53 million at the time of reportage. Since 2019, Bhutan has been utilizing its plentiful hydroelectric power resources to mine Bitcoin. In September 2024, Arkham Intelligence identified the first wallet associated with Druk Holdings, the investment arm of the Bhutan government. Following the recent transfers, this wallet now contains Bitcoin investments totaling $889.9 million.
These figures suggest that Bhutan’s cryptocurrency holdings account for 30.7% of its GDP, which was reported to be $2.9 billion in 2023 by the World Bank. Despite Bitcoin being the Bhutan government’s primary holding, the nation doesn’t seem to be solely focusing on a Bitcoin-based strategic reserve. Druk Holdings’ wallet also holds other cryptocurrencies including Ether (ETH), LinqAI (LNQ), Phil (PHIL), and Apu Apustaja (APU), among others.
In October 2024, Bhutan transferred $66 million worth of its BTC holdings to Binance. Over the past couple of months, the government has been distributing smaller fractions of Bitcoin and Ether from its main wallet to different addresses.
Adoption of cryptocurrencies is not limited to just the national government of Bhutan. This trend has also percolated down to the city level. For instance, in January 2025, the Gelephu Special Administrative Region of Bhutan announced plans to include diverse digital assets in its strategic reserve.
Governments adopting Bitcoin strategic reserves have seen their holdings grow significantly during the ongoing bull run from 2024. El Salvador’s Bitcoin holdings swelled to $100 million in November 2024, and the US government now controls more than $17 billion in Bitcoin.
While national governments are in the spotlight, several state governments, particularly in the US, are also considering creating Bitcoin reserves. Texas has passed its Bitcoin reserve bill, pending the governor’s signature. Bitcoin reserve bills in states like Arizona are nearing enactment, although a few states have dismissed their Bitcoin bills for various reasons.
