Barclays Raises IBIT Holdings to 3.94 Million Shares Worth $187 Million
Key Facts
Barclays raised its holdings in BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust to 3.94 million shares at the end of the quarter ended September 30, 2026, up 48% from 2.66 million shares at the end of June, according to ATLABYTE’s coverage of disclosure data. The reported value of the position was $187 million, compared with $88.5 million at the end of the previous quarter. A filing by Citigroup with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission also showed a position worth $118,867,152 in the Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund, represented by 1,636,387 shares. Citi data also showed its IBIT holdings rising 50% to about 521,000 shares, from about 347,000 shares at the end of June. Barclays’ disclosures cover the quarter ended September 30, and its form was signed on November 6.
Share counts provide a clearer comparison of how positions changed between the ends of the two quarters than dollar values alone. An analyst noted that IBIT rose about 41% in the third quarter, meaning the fund’s price gains could increase the reported value of a holding without, on their own, explaining the amount of any new buying. The analyst said that “the number of shares matters more than the dollar value” when assessing changes in positions. By that measure, Barclays’ reported holdings rose from 2.66 million shares to 3.94 million shares, while Citi’s holdings increased from 347,000 shares to about 521,000 shares. The figures remain snapshots dated at the end of June and September and do not record trading after those dates.
In early third-quarter disclosures, banks reported $258 million in positions in spot bitcoin funds, or 4.9% of reported positions, compared with $107 million and 3.2% in the second quarter. Investment advisers remained the largest reporting group, with positions totaling $3.5 billion, or 66.6% of the total, versus $2.2 billion a quarter earlier. Aggregate positions among 1,389 institutions rose to $5.25 billion from $3.35 billion in the previous quarter. An analyst at Bitwise said early readings point to a growing share of longer-horizon investors in the spot bitcoin fund investor base. These figures place the Barclays and Citi disclosures within a broader trend of growth in reported positions, while investment advisers continue to dominate by size.
IBIT data show that its net assets stood at $67,031,315,113 on September 30, 2026, compared with $67,401,155,244 on December 31, 2025. Net asset value per share was $47.38 on both respective dates, according to the fund’s quarterly report filed with the SEC. While institutional disclosures reflect reported holdings at quarter-end, net asset and per-share net asset value data provide additional context on the fund’s size and value on those dates. A holding in a listed fund does not, by itself, establish an institution’s purpose for holding it. Nor is the dollar value of a position alone enough to determine how the share count changed, particularly as the fund’s price moved during the period.
Citi shares closed at $124.21, while Barclays’ listed American depositary receipt closed at $23.15 on November 11, 2026. This comes as disclosures for the end of September continue to arrive; the SEC set November 16, 2026, as the deadline for filing third-quarter Form 13F reports. Reports filed by that date may add other institutions to the early picture of reported positions. Form 13F reports list the number of shares and fair market value of securities at quarter-end, according to SEC guidance. Any reading of these figures therefore remains tied to September 30 and does not necessarily describe institutions’ current positions.