Sovereign investment in Bitcoin is accelerating—just not always in the most direct way

In a new report, Standard Chartered Bank says indirect exposure via Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy) is quietly increasing among government entities

Standard Chartered says SEC 13F filings support Bitcoin reaching $500,000.

The latest 13F data from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) supports a possible rise in Bitcoin (BTC) to $500,000 by end-2028, Standard Chartered says.

While direct bitcoin ETF buying slowed—with Wisconsin’s state fund exiting its entire 3,400 BTC-equivalent IBIT position—government-linked purchases of Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy) shares were on the rise, the bank noted.

Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala upped its IBIT exposure to 5,000 BTC equivalent, but the bigger story is elsewhere, says Geoff Kendrick, Standard Chartered’s global head of digital assets research.

“We believe that in some cases, MSTR holdings by government entities reflect a desire to gain Bitcoin exposure where local regulations do not allow direct BTC holdings,” he said.

France and Saudi Arabia took first-time MSTR positions in Q1. Meanwhile, Norway’s Government Pension Fund, the Swiss National Bank, and South Korea’s public funds each added exposure equivalent to 700 BTC. U.S. retirement funds in states like California and New York added a combined 1,000 BTC equivalent via MSTR.

Kendrick called the trend “very encouraging.”

“The quarterly 13F data is the best test of our thesis that BTC will attract new institutional buyer types as the market matures, helping the price reach our USD 500,000 level,” he said. “When institutions buy Bitcoin, prices tend to rise.”

This isn’t Kendrick’s first bullish call. Last month, he admitted his prior $120K forecast for Q2 2025 was “too low,” citing surging inflows into U.S. spot BTC ETFs—totaling $5.3 billion over just three weeks. At the time, Kendrick revised his 2025 year-end target to $200,000.

Standard Chartered’s latest analysis shows that Bitcoin’s role in institutional portfolios is maturing beyond tech volatility correlation—now increasingly seen as a macro hedge. “It is now all about flows,” Kendrick said. “And flows are coming in many forms.”