protos.com
As bitcoin’s ($BTC) price reached new all-time highs of $118,000, countries with the currency in their reserves or under the control of authorities have seen gains in the multi-millions, if not billions.
According to Arkham, the US holds 198,000 $BTC, which is now worth almost $23.4 billion, and will be put towards the strategic $BTC reserve announced by President Donald Trump earlier this year.
It’s risen by over $3 billion since its previous highs in January.
Meanwhile, the UK holds 61,245 $BTC, seized from a large-scale money laundering scheme. It’s been under police control since at least 2021, and in the four years since, it’s risen by $4.86 billion to $7.26 billion.
The UK government currently has no plans to turn it into a reserve.
Read more: Reform UK could make Labour think twice about bitcoin reserve
Bhutan, the picturesque Himalayan nation, also holds around 11,600 $BTC via its Druk Holdings firm. This figure is made up of $BTC obtained through its crypto mining operation, which was boosted by $BTC mining firm Bitdeer and its co-founder Jihan Wu.
The country’s stash is now worth over $1.37 billion.
El Salvador, which is run by Nayib Bukele, a dictator with a love for $BTC and an inhumane justice system, holds 6,234 $BTC, now worth almost $740 million.
He was ordered by the IMF to cease certain $BTC policies, but this hasn’t stopped him from buying more.
Read more: Bitcoin dev Jon Atack got arrested in El Salvador this weekend
Ukraine officials reportedly hold over 46,000 $BTC, which would be worth $5.7 billion today. These figures don’t equate to state holdings of $BTC, and $BTC trackers claiming otherwise have been criticized for classing it as state holdings with zero evidence.
China is the same. $BTC treasury tracker Bitbo claims the country holds 194,000 $BTC obtained through a seizure.
However, crypto analysts have noted that there’s no proof they still own this $BTC, which may well have been liquidated already.
Germany, which seized almost 50,000 $BTC, sold it for $2.88 billion in July 2024. This is standard procedure for many governments seizing crypto that don’t have $BTC reserves.
If it had followed Trump’s lead, however, its stash may have been worth $5.88 billion by now, a $3 billion difference.