Crypto news

The Harvard University endowment fund, one of the largest institutional players in the market, is showing a curious signal: its position in BlackRock's bitcoin ETF (IBIT) remained unchanged at the end of the second quarter. According to the latest 13F filing submitted to the SEC, as of June 30, the fund held 3.04 million IBIT shares worth $101.4 million—exactly the same as three months earlier.

This is especially notable against the backdrop of previous dynamics. Let me remind you that Harvard had been methodically reducing its exposure to the first cryptocurrency for two consecutive quarters: down 21% at the end of 2025 and another 43% in the first quarter of 2026. The current pause may mean that the fund's managers have seen sufficient value at current levels, or they have simply taken a timeout to reassess their strategy.

Gold vs Bitcoin: A Shift in Priorities

However, the comparison with gold ETFs looks more telling. For the same reporting period, Harvard's investments in the precious metal amounted to $171.2 million, significantly exceeding its bitcoin position ($101.4 million). This is a classic defensive tilt: the fund is clearly favoring traditional safe-haven assets amid macroeconomic uncertainty.

Nevertheless, the halt in IBIT selling is not just a statistical detail. In my analysis, this is a signal that even conservative institutional investors, who had previously been actively taking profits, are beginning to view current levels as an acceptable entry point or, at least, see no reason for further flight. For the market, this is a positive sign, especially against the backdrop of a general cooling of interest in crypto ETFs from other funds.

My conclusion: Harvard is not turning toward bitcoin, but it is not running away from it either. This is more of a stabilization phase that could precede a new accumulation cycle if the regulatory and macroeconomic environment continues to improve in the second half of the year.