Bhutan Disputes $1 Billion Bitcoin Sell-Off Claims: What’s Really Happening?

Markets

What to know:

Bhutan, a tiny country in the Himalayas, was one of the first nations to officially mine bitcoin (along with El Salvador), and recent reports suggest it has been selling some of its holdings.

My research, using data from Arkham Intelligence, suggests that the country may have sold around $1 billion in Bitcoin starting in July 2025.

According to data from Arkham, wallets linked to Druk Holding and Investments (DHI), Bhutan’s national investment fund, have transferred around $207 million in bitcoin to different exchanges and trading companies this year.

The amount of Bitcoin held in wallets identified as belonging to Bhutan has fallen significantly, from about 13,000 BTC in October 2024 to roughly 3,100 BTC as of Friday. This amount was worth $252 million on Friday evening (India time). If this trend continues, Arkham estimates that Bhutan will have sold all of its Bitcoin by October 2026.

But officials from the country’s investment unit say they have not sold any bitcoin.

DHI CEO Ujjwal Deep Dahal told CoinDesk they haven’t sold any Bitcoin recently. When asked about specific Bitcoin movements identified by Arkham, the company simply reaffirmed their previous statement and declined to comment further.

DHI didn’t comment on the specific bitcoin transactions, nor did they challenge Arkham’s claim that those transactions belonged to Bhutan. They also didn’t reveal how much bitcoin Bhutan currently has, or confirm whether they still hold around 13,000 BTC if any sales haven’t occurred.

For years, Arkham has identified these digital wallets as belonging to Digital Holdings International (DHI) without any objections from the Bhutanese government, even when information about transactions was made public. Arkham also reports that Bhutan has been mining Bitcoin since around 2019, and the government has directly funded at least four mining facilities within the country.

According to an Arkham analyst who spoke with CoinDesk, people usually send cryptocurrency to exchanges or trading firms because they want to trade it for other assets.

“However, once the funds go to a centralized exchange, there is generally no definitive sign that they have been sold, because the exchange’s order books are off chain. Nonetheless, depositing assets to exchanges generally indicates selling activity.”

Last month, Arkham explained to CoinDesk that they use an internal team and AI technology to identify and label wallet addresses. This team gathers and analyzes information from publicly available sources. However, Arkham confirmed they hadn’t directly verified these addresses with Bhutanese officials or government ministries.

Some of the funds were sent to wallets linked to Galaxy Digital and OKX – exchanges and trading companies that usually handle outgoing transactions, not internal transfers.

Someone familiar with one of the companies that received bitcoin from Bhutan says they haven’t seen any recent sales.

While bitcoin is being transferred between wallets, Bhutan doesn’t classify these transfers as “sales.” This covers situations like sending bitcoin to a storage service, using it as security for a loan, or private agreements that aren’t simple purchases.

Last December, Bhutan pledged up to 10,000 Bitcoin to help build Gelephu Mindfulness City, a new business area in the southern part of the country, and support its long-term growth.

When initially announced, the commitment was valued around $860 million. However, with bitcoin now trading near $79,000 and Bhutan holding about 3,300 BTC, the kingdom no longer has the 10,000 BTC needed to fulfill that commitment.

In March, CoinDesk reported that Bhutan may have stopped all cryptocurrency mining, as its associated digital wallets haven’t received any major deposits in over a year.

The lack of activity was strange, considering the country’s plentiful hydropower resources. Bhutan earned its cryptocurrency through mining, rather than buying it on the open market, and currently has around $754 million in potential profit from its remaining holdings.

But DHI’s Dahal said the country had been “fortunate this year” with early and consistent rainfall.

Rain is essential for keeping our hydropower plants fully operational and our mining businesses running. Because all Bitcoin mined in Bhutan is powered by renewable energy, we’re constantly updating our equipment to stay competitive.

There’s a disconnect between what Bhutanese officials claim about their Bitcoin holdings and what’s actually happening on the blockchain. This raises doubts about the country’s Bitcoin mining and where those coins are now.

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2026-05-16 05:34