Bhutan moves $22M in Bitcoin as Arkham flags patterned BTC sales

Bhutan-linked wallets controlled by Druk Holding & Investments (DHI) moved more than 284 bitcoin worth roughly $22 million over the past week, according to on-chain data from Arkham Intelligence.

Summary

  • Bhutan-linked wallets moved over $22 million in Bitcoin this week, including a $14 million transfer and an earlier $8.3 million transaction tied to an institutional merchant deposit, according to Arkham data.
  • Arkham says Bhutan has a history of selling Bitcoin in structured clips of around $50 million, with heavy selling observed in mid-to-late September 2025, though no sale has been confirmed from the latest transfers.
  • Additional Ethereum and USDT movements suggest active treasury management, reinforcing Bhutanโ€™s role as one of the few governments with Bitcoin sourced from state-backed mining operations.

The activity places fresh focus on the Himalayan nationโ€™s growing role as a sovereign Bitcoin holder.

Bhutanโ€™s Largest Transfer Tops $14 Million

The most significant transaction occurred seven hours ago, when a wallet linked to Bhutan moved 184.028 Bitcoin (BTC), valued at about $14.09 million.

Last Friday, another 100.818 BTC, worth approximately $8.31 million, was transferred from a Bhutan-controlled wallet to an address labelled as a QCP Capital WBTC merchant deposit. Such destinations are commonly associated with institutional crypto infrastructure.

Source: Arkham

The transfers do not confirm that Bhutan has sold any Bitcoin. However, deposits to merchant or intermediary-linked addresses are often viewed as preparatory steps for liquidity management or asset repositioning.

The activity comes amid heightened market volatility, with Bitcoin recently under pressure. Sovereign-linked movements tend to attract attention due to their potential impact on market sentiment.

Interestingly, Bhutanโ€™s Bitcoin holdings have now fallen from a peak of 13,295 BTC in October 2024 to 5,700 BTC at press time.

According to Arkham, Bhutanโ€™s Bitcoin movements tend to follow a consistent pattern.

โ€œFrom our observations, Bhutan periodically sells BTC in clips of around $50 million,โ€ Arkham noted. The firm added that a particularly heavy period of selling occurred around mid to late September 2025.

Additional Ethereum and Stablecoin Activity

Beyond Bitcoin, Bhutan-linked wallets also recorded several small Ethereum (ETH) transactions during the same period.

Separately, $1.5 million in USDT moved between exchange-linked wallets and Bhutan-associated addresses within the last several hours. The flows suggest active treasury operations rather than passive holding.

Bhutanโ€™s Unique Position as a Sovereign Bitcoin Holder

Bhutanโ€™s Bitcoin reserves are widely believed to come from state-backed mining operations powered by hydroelectric energy. This sets the country apart from other governments whose holdings typically stem from seizures or enforcement actions.

The latest transfers highlight Bhutanโ€™s continued engagement with crypto markets. They also underscore how sovereign involvement in digital assets is becoming harder for markets to ignore.

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