Bloomberg: The hedge fund that helped drive the US Bitcoin ETF craze is rapidly retreating, with Bitcoin ETF holdings in Q4 2025 down 28% quarter-over-quarter.

On February 23, Bloomberg reported that hedge funds, which previously fueled the surge in U.S. Bitcoin ETF (Exchange-Traded Fund) popularity, are rapidly withdrawing. According to data compiled by CF Benchmarks, a wholly owned subsidiary of the crypto trading platform CEX, the total holdings of Bitcoin ETFs by the largest hedge funds decreased by 28% from the third quarter to the fourth quarter of 2025. In a research report dated February 19, CF Benchmarks’ research director Gabe Selby wrote, “The dominant theme over the past two quarters has been hedge fund de-risking operations. The spike and subsequent pullback in October seem to have triggered systematic deleveraging.” Brevan Howard significantly adjusted its holdings in the iShares Bitcoin Trust under BlackRock, becoming the largest seller of this spot ETF in the fourth quarter. Its holdings decreased by approximately 86% to 5.5 million shares, reducing the value of its spot position from about $2.4 billion to $275 million. Bitcoin prices declined along with macro risks, and at certain points, the declines were even greater, undermining the previous logic pitched to institutional investors—that Bitcoin can hedge against inflation, currency devaluation, or stock market pressure.