River: Bitcoin Adoption Surged in 2025 Despite 50% Price Pullback

Bitcoin traded at US$64,492 (AU$90,289) in February, almost 50% below its early October all-time high, even as adoption trends strengthened, according to River. 

There is no bear market in Bitcoin adoption. Bitcoin is down 50% from all-time highs, but adoption is compounding in ways that aren’t affecting the price, yet.

River

River reported that institutions accumulated approximately 829,000 BTC in 2025, spanning purchases by businesses, governments, funds and ETFs. It added that institutional holdings reached 829,000 BTC overall. The report said these entities represent “millions of underlying individual investors” accessing Bitcoin via retirement plans, sovereign funds and corporate balance sheets.

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Adoption Broadens Across Financial Channels

Registered investment advisers allocated about US$1.5 billion (AU$2.1 billion) per quarter into Bitcoin ETFs over the past two years, recording eight consecutive quarters without net outflows. Despite widespread exposure across 29 of the 30 largest US firms, average allocations remain just 0.008%.

Businesses were identified as the largest buyer cohort in 2025, adding US$54 billion (AU$75.6 billion) in Bitcoin to balance sheets. Corporate adoption increased 2.5 times year-on-year.

At the sovereign level, five nations became new holders, including Luxembourg, Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund and the Czech Republic’s central bank, bringing the total to 23 countries.

River concluded that “Bitcoin’s mainstream adoption has not entered a bear market,” arguing that integration across institutions, banks and merchants continues despite weaker price performance.

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