Bybit’s fourth-quarter report, released on December 4, delved into the distinct trends within its investor segments: institutional and retail. Institutional traders were found to have allocated about 45% of their assets into stablecoins, while the remaining distribution comprised 35% in Bitcoin, 15% in Ether, and a mere 5% in altcoins, categorized as digital assets beyond those mentioned.
The report pointed out that there was a noticeable shift among traders towards safer assets like stablecoins in a bear market scenario, potentially explaining institutional traders’ risk-averse asset allocation.
Despite this general tendency, there was a notable spike in institutional Bitcoin holdings in September, setting them apart from other user categories. Bybit associated this surge with positive market sentiment towards Bitcoin, possibly linked to expectations surrounding favorable lawsuit outcomes and the anticipation of the SEC’s possible approval of a spot BTC ETF.
On December 4, BTC surged beyond $41,000 for the first time in 19 months, with its overall market capitalization surpassing $800 billion, positioning it ahead of Berkshire Hathaway but trailing behind companies like Meta (formerly Facebook) and Nvidia.
Bybit highlighted that retail traders exhibited the lowest percentage of holdings in Bitcoin compared to other user groups. Conversely, retail traders had a relatively higher stake in stablecoins. Although stablecoins still constituted a significant portion of institutional portfolios, their holdings declined.
Earlier in the year, Bybit announced a user base of 20 million, and in the preceding year, it secured a position among the top 10 cryptocurrency exchanges globally by trading volume.
As BTC prices continued their ascent, there was a noticeable uptick in interest from major institutions. Brazil’s largest bank, Itaú Unibanco, reportedly launched a BTC trading service for its clients linked to its investment platform on December 4.
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