Bhutan surpasses El Salvador to become the third largest holder of Bitcoin
On September 20, the on-chain analysis platform revealed that Bhutan has become a major holder of Bitcoin, surpassing El Salvador's holdings in cryptocurrencies, according to data from Arkham Intelligence. Bhutan holds 13,029 Bitcoins, worth approximately $758 million.
This makes Bhutan the largest Bitcoin holder in South Asia, surpassing El Salvador, which holds 5,875 Bitcoins worth $331 million.
These Bitcoin holdings are related to Druk Holdings and Investments (DHI), an investment institution of the Kingdom of Bhutan, which uses the country's abundant hydropower resources for Bitcoin mining. Arkham Intelligence confirmed the mining activities at the site of the former Education City project in Bhutan by combining on-chain data and satellite imagery.
In addition to Bitcoin, Druk Holdings also holds 656 Ethereum, worth approximately $1.5 million, in addition to a small amount of BNB and Polygon, further diversifying its cryptocurrency portfolio.
The specific data of Bitcoin holdings of various governments are as follows: US$12.16 billion in the United States, US$3.67 billion in the United Kingdom, US$782.46 million in Bhutan, and US$351.75 million in El Salvador. It is worth noting that Germany has dropped from US$3.56 billion to zero.
