Contrary to market expectations, one of Wall Street's largest market makers, Jane Street, has disclosed a significant increase in its holdings in bitcoin ETFs. According to documents filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), as of June 30, the company held a $990 million stake in exchange-traded funds tied to the leading cryptocurrency. A key portion of these assets is in BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT).
This news emerged around the same time Jane Street confirmed July losses of $15 billion, calling the past month its worst in ten years. However, such large-scale movements in a market maker's filings are more a reflection of hedging and inventory management than a long-term investment strategy. Companies like Jane Street operate not as classic investors betting on an asset's rise or fall, but as intermediaries providing liquidity.
It is worth noting that this is not the first time the company's portfolio has seen significant reshuffling. In the first quarter of 2026, Jane Street cut its stake in IBIT by 71% while simultaneously increasing positions in Ethereum ETFs. Such changes point to flexible inventory management rather than a fundamental view on the market.
The growth in bitcoin ETF positions may indicate increased client demand for this instrument, but it is by no means a signal that the firm itself expects a rally in the leading cryptocurrency. At the time of the filing, bitcoin was trading around $64,000, up 1.6% over the day.
Weak month, record year
The bulk of Jane Street's July losses is tied to its stake in the hedge fund Situational Awareness, which uses artificial intelligence for trading strategies. Due to margin calls, the company was forced to urgently sell shares in late July, and the situation was compounded by unsuccessful bets in Asian stock markets. Despite this, trading revenue for the year has already exceeded $40 billion, surpassing the record $39.6 billion for all of 2025.
It remains unknown whether the company increased its bitcoin ETF holdings after June 30 or, conversely, reduced them. The answer will only come in the next 13F filing, which will be published in November. For now, $990 million is just a one-time snapshot that does not prove that Wall Street's largest market maker is betting on BTC's rise.
My take: The market often overestimates the significance of 13F filings from market makers. These are not investment declarations but operational data. Nevertheless, the very fact that Jane Street continues to actively work with bitcoin ETFs even during its own financial difficulties confirms the institutional maturity of this asset class. For a long-term bullish scenario, it is more important that classic funds, not just market makers, build up such positions.