Cryptocurrency exchange giant Coinbase (NASDAQ: COIN) has emerged as a dominant player in the Bitcoin space, holding approximately 1 million Bitcoins, equivalent to a staggering $25 billion in value, as per recent research findings by blockchain analytics firm Arkham Intelligence, published on Sunday. This revelation underscores Coinbase’s significant influence in the crypto sphere, as it now possesses nearly 5% of the total global supply of Bitcoin.
Arkham Intelligence’s comprehensive research effort involved the identification and tagging of approximately 36 million Bitcoin deposit and holding addresses affiliated with Coinbase. The largest among these identified addresses, which serves as a cold wallet for secure offline storage, contains an impressive 10,000 Bitcoins. The firm also hinted that there could be additional untagged Bitcoin assets owned by Coinbase, which have not been incorporated into their research findings.
This substantial accumulation of Bitcoin firmly establishes Coinbase as the world’s foremost Bitcoin entity. However, it’s essential to note that not all the Bitcoins held within Coinbase’s wallets are the exchange’s property. While Coinbase does manage wallets containing billions of dollars’ worth of Bitcoin, its corporate-owned Bitcoin holdings are estimated to be approximately 10,000 BTC, which translates to roughly $200 million based on prevailing market rates.
In contrast to Coinbase’s formidable holdings, there has been a noteworthy decline in the supply of Bitcoin available on cryptocurrency exchanges. Data from Santiment reveals that the quantity of BTC held on exchanges has dwindled to approximately 1.1 million, marking the lowest level seen in nearly six years. This decrease could be perceived as a bullish signal within the crypto market but may also be influenced by the regulatory uncertainties surrounding Coinbase and other exchanges.
Coinbase’s Bitcoin reserves now rival those attributed to Satoshi Nakamoto, the enigmatic founder of Bitcoin. Nakamoto is believed to have mined over 1 million BTC during the period between January and July 2009 when the cryptocurrency’s value was mere fractions of a cent. Today, these holdings would be worth over $26 billion.
In the corporate realm of Bitcoin ownership, MicroStrategy continues to be a significant player. In their August financial disclosure, MicroStrategy disclosed their ownership of 152,800 BTC, valued at an impressive $4 billion.
Coinbase’s most recent 10-Q filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) estimates that the exchange holds $60.7 billion in customer assets and liabilities denominated in Bitcoin. It’s noteworthy that trading in Bitcoin and Bitcoin pairs constitutes a substantial portion of Coinbase’s trading volume, accounting for 40% of its total trading volumes and approximately 39% of its transaction revenue.
