The kingdom of Bhutan continues its reduction in bitcoin (BTC) reserves and accumulates a drop of close to 70% from its maximum recorded in October 2024, according to data on-chain from Arkham Intelligence.
According to Arkham Intelligence data, the holdings of the country they went from around 13,000 BTC in October 2024 to 3,954 BTC currently, which confirms an acceleration in its divestment strategy. In the first quarter of this year alone, bitcoin worth approximately $215 to $216 million would have been transferred.
This movement extends the trend observed weeks ago. As Criptonoticias reported at the beginning of March, reserves had already fallen to 5,425 BTC, reflecting a 60% reduction. Since then, new transfers have deepened the adjustment up to the current level.
Until now, there are no official statements recent government reports on specific sales for 2026. The approach has been discreet: transfers are detected on-chain.
Consequently, on-chain records suggest that Bhutan has executed sales and moves gradually, possibly linked to over-the-counter (OTC) trading or treasury management strategies. Among the factors behind these decisions have been pointed out liquidity needs, financing of national projects and the increase in operating costs after the 2024 halving.
Another relevant element is added to the previous context: The country has not registered significant income from bitcoin mining —over $100,000— in more than a year. This suggests that its mining operations, historically powered by hydropower, may have been reduced or even stopped.
The strategy is different with Ethereum
But not all digital assets in the country have followed the same trajectory. The available data indicate that Bhutan maintains its ether reserves (ETH, the Ethereum cryptocurrency) no relevant movements reported so far in 2026.
According to records on-chainwallets linked to the government concentrate around 29,791 ETHvalued between $66,000 and $70,000.
In that sense, Bhutan does not treat ETH as a speculative asset or pure store of value (as it does with bitcoin). Its strategy is clearly dual and asymmetric: it sells BTC aggressively, but it productively holds and deploys ETH as a national technological infrastructure and long-term strategic reserve.
Unlike bitcoin, this asset would not be liquidatedbut used with an approach more linked to national projects, in line with a long-term blockchain strategy, as the country continues to reduce its BTC holdings gradually.
It is thus observed that BTC sales by Bhutan reflect a shift in their strategyafter having begun to accumulate the digital asset in 2019, reaching a peak in 2024. The country came to occupy fourth place among the states that own the digital currency, ranking above El Salvador. With sales made, it currently occupies seventh place.
This moves from accumulation to the active use of its reserves, where bitcoin becomes a source of liquidity to meet internal needs. It remains to be determined whether this is a temporary adjustment or a structural change in its economic policy linked to the digital currency.