Abu Dhabi’s getting serious about Bitcoin. The Abu Dhabi Investment Council nearly tripled its holdings in BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF during the third quarter. They went from 2.4 million shares at the start of Q3 to almost 8 million by September 30th. That’s worth around $520 million.
ADIC, which is part of Mubadala Investment Company, told Bloomberg they see Bitcoin as basically digital gold. That’s a pretty strong endorsement coming from a major sovereign wealth fund in the UAE.
The timing of their buy is interesting, though. They loaded up right before Bitcoin hit its all-time high of $125,100 on October 5th. Since then things haven’t been great. Bitcoin crashed back below $90,000, and IBIT’s stock price has dropped about 23% since the end of Q3. It closed Wednesday at $50.71.
Despite the recent bloodbath, people are reading ADIC’s move as proof that institutional money is still flowing into crypto. One crypto treasury manager said it shows the UAE is positioning itself as a global digital asset hub.
ETF analyst Eric Balchunas called it an “ugly stretch” for IBIT. The fund saw its biggest daily outflow ever on Tuesday, with $523 million walking out the door.
Conclusion
Abu Dhabi’s aggressive Bitcoin ETF purchases signal growing institutional confidence in cryptocurrency as a strategic asset, even as short-term price volatility tests investor resolve globally.
Also Read: Bitcoin Plunging Right Now
