Morgan Stanley fully exited 8,300 BTC in Q1, while BlackRock's IBIT led a reversal of 13 days of outflows. Banks doubled ETF exposure, hedge funds slashed holdings.
Major US banks increased Bitcoin ETF exposure by 339% YoY in Q1 2026, while hedge funds and brokerages slashed holdings, signaling a strategic divergence in professional crypto adoption.
Quantitative hedge funds achieve double-digit returns in 2026, driven by strong commodity trends. Energy, currencies, and metals fuel gains as trend-following strategies capitalize on supply shocks and geopolitical shifts.