Bhutan Sells 70% of Bitcoin Holdings Over 18 Months, Arkham Data Shows
Arkham data indicates Bhutan sold roughly 70% of its Bitcoin holdings over the past 18 months. Here is the key context and market angle.
Bhutan’s Bitcoin position appears to have fallen by about seven in ten over roughly the past year and a half, based on Arkham wallet labels and secondary reporting around transfers linked to Druk Holding & Investments. The shift matters because the wallets are tied to Bhutan’s sovereign investment arm and to a state-backed mining program the International Monetary Fund has already described in official filings.
Key Points
- Cointelegraph said Bhutan’s tracked balance fell from about 13,000 BTC in late 2024 to 3,654 BTC in April 2026, implying a reduction of roughly 70%.
- Arkham’s public explorer for the Bhutan-linked cluster still showed about $274.9 million in tracked holdings at the time of the research brief.
- The IMF said DHI began mining mainly Bitcoin at a 420 MW facility in 2022, expanded with Bitdeer in August 2023, and was financed through US$539 million of RMA securities purchases.
What Arkham Data Suggests About Bhutan’s Bitcoin Sales
The headline is really about an Arkham-tracked balance decline
Cointelegraph reported on April 9, 2026 that Bhutan-linked wallets had sent out more than 9,000 BTC since late October 2024, leaving an estimated 3,654 BTC in April 2026. That Arkham-linked comparison is the basis for the claim that Bhutan’s holdings have dropped by roughly 70%.
The strongest evidence is on wallet labels and changing balances, not on the final purpose of every transfer. Arkham’s public explorer ties the Bhutan Government labeling to Druk Holding & Investments, but neither Bhutan nor DHI has publicly confirmed that every coin leaving those wallets was sold into the market rather than moved for custody or collateral reasons.
The timeframe also needs careful phrasing. The accessible reporting points to activity from late October 2024 through April 2026, which is roughly 17 to 18 months according to a single report summarizing Arkham-labeled wallets. That makes the headline’s “past 18 months” wording a reasonable shorthand, but not an officially confirmed interval from Bhutan itself.
As one recent example of the flow activity behind the broader decline, Cointelegraph said a Bhutan-linked wallet transferred about 319 BTC worth roughly $22.68 million in the report published on April 9, 2026. Even after that move, Arkham’s public page still showed around $274.9 million in tracked holdings, which is why sovereign-labeled wallets continue to attract the same kind of scrutiny seen in U.S. Government-Linked Wallet Moves 2.438 BTC, On-Chain Data Shows.
Why Bhutan’s Bitcoin Position Matters to the Market Narrative
The policy signal matters as much as the wallet movement
The IMF said Bhutan’s state-owned DHI began mining mainly Bitcoin at a 420 MW facility in 2022 and expanded that effort through Bitdeer in August 2023. That means the remaining coins are best viewed as part of a sovereign mining and treasury stack, not just as an isolated wallet balance on a dashboard.
The reserve-management clause in the IMF report is what turns the Arkham data into a broader macro story. The fund said Bhutan’s Royal Monetary Authority acquired US$539 million of DHI securities between August 2020 and April 2022, and retained the right to request crypto-asset sales if reserves fall below the constitutional minimum.
That IMF financing line and sale-request authority explain why Bhutan’s balance reduction deserves more attention than a routine treasury reshuffle. The same documentation-first lens is useful in Polymarket Protocol Upgrade and pUSD Plans: What the Docs Say, while the strategic competition angle overlaps with CZ Says Missing Blockchain or AI Leaves Countries Behind.
This remains a partially verified story, and that limitation should shape the takeaway. Based on the public Arkham view and the cited IMF filing, the defensible conclusion is that Bhutan-linked wallets have shrunk sharply while the country’s mining and reserve framework gives those outflows a policy context that most transfer-only coverage misses.
Disclaimer: This content is for informational purposes only and is not financial advice.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice. Cryptocurrency and digital asset markets carry significant risk. Always do your own research before making decisions.
