Big Institutions Accumulate More Bitcoin (BTC) Than They Sell – Bull Run Ahead?

Riot Platforms, one of the publicly traded Bitcoin miners, sold 475 BTC in April 2025—its first sale in over a year. The move came as the company faced a 13% drop in mining output. Output fell from 533 BTC in March to 463 BTC in April. Riot attributed the production decline to two consecutive network difficulty adjustments and confirmed its complete exit from the mining hosting business. In a statement, CEO Jason Les described the sale as a strategic decision to support growth and operations without diluting shareholder equity. Despite the sale, Riot’s Bitcoin holdings remained steady at 19,211 BTC by the end of April—more than double the 8,872 BTC it held a year ago. Strategy Slows Its Buying—B ut Still Adds $ 180M in BTC While Riot moved to liquidate a portion of its holdings, Strategy continued to accumulate . Between April 28 and May 4, the company acquired 1,895 BTC for $180.3 million at an average price of $95,167 per coin. Although this was Strategy’s smallest weekly purchase of 2025, the company now holds 555,450 BTC, purchased at an average price of $68,550. As of May 1, its unrealized gains reached $5.8 billion. Strategy’s broader capital plan for 2025 includes $42 billion in equity and another $42 billion in fixed income. This was designated specifically for expanding its Bitcoin portfolio. The company also reported a 13.7% Bitcoin yield—approaching its 15% target for the year. Despite market volatility, Strategy remains the largest corporate holder of Bitcoin globally. Other institutional buyers also increased their activity. Semler Scientific, a publicly listed U.S. health technology firm, disclosed it had acquired 167 BTC between April 30 and May 2 for $16.2 million at an average price of $97,093. This followed a prior purchase of 111 BTC on April 25, marking a 50% week-over-week increase in acquisition volume. As of May 2, Semler holds 3,634 BTC, acquired at an average price of $88,668. Though smaller in scale than Strategy, Semler’s recent buying spree shows growing corporate interest in Bitcoin as a treasury asset—even at elevated prices. Bitcoin Reserves on Exchanges Continue to Decline, Fell to Three-Year Lows Institutional buying is coinciding with a notable drop in Bitcoin exchange reserves. Total amount of BTC held on centralized exchanges has declined to approximately 2.5 million—its lowest level since mid-2021. This means fewer coins are available for sale on trading platforms. Investors are moving their Bitcoin to private wallets with the intention of holding the token for long term. Falling exchange reserves are often seen as a bullish sign. When the supply of Bitcoin on exchanges gets lower, and demand stays strong, it can drive prices higher. In previous cycles, sustained drops in exchange reserves have preceded sharp upward price movements.