174 publicly listed companies held 1,187,898 Bitcoin as of May 12, 2026, according to Bitwise Q1 2026 data. That figure represents over 5% of all Bitcoin in existence sitting on corporate balance sheets. In Q1 alone, these firms added 50,351 BTC net, a pace running at 2.8 times daily global mining output. The available free-market supply keeps shrinking.
The question CFOs at major corporations are increasingly asking is no longer “why hold Bitcoin” but “what's the cost of waiting.” That shift in framing tells you something about where institutional sentiment currently stands.
Corporate Bitcoin Holdings: The Numbers That Reshape Supply
Key data points
- Public companies with BTC on balance sheet: 174
- Total BTC held (May 12, 2026): 1,187,898 BTC
- Net BTC added in Q1 2026: +50,351 BTC
- Acquisition pace vs. mining output: 2.8x
- Strategy Inc. (leader): 818,869 BTC
- Metaplanet (3rd globally, as of March 31): 40,177 BTC
- Corporate share of total BTC supply: over 5%
Key Data
- Public companies with BTC on balance sheet 174
- Total BTC held (May 12, 2026) 1,187,898 BTC
- Net BTC added in Q1 2026 +50,351 BTC
- Acquisition pace vs. mining output 2.8x
- Strategy Inc. (leader) 818,869 BTC
- Metaplanet (3rd globally, as of March 31) 40,177 BTC
- Corporate share of total BTC supply >5%
Source: Bitwise Q1 2026 Report · BitcoinMiningStock.io · May 12, 2026
How Many Public Companies Hold Bitcoin in 2026?
Functionally, 174, as of May 12. Fewer than 40 companies held BTC at the end of 2021. That count barely reached 90 by 2024. The growth wasn't gradual: it accelerated sharply. Per Bitwise Q1 2026 data, Strategy Inc. leads with 818,869 BTC, roughly 69% of the entire corporate pool. Twenty One Capital holds 43,514 BTC in second place, followed by Metaplanet with 40,177 BTC as of March 31, and MARA Holdings with 35,303 BTC.
The operating logic differs by company. Some buy Bitcoin to hedge cash reserves against purchasing-power erosion. Strategy, on the other hand, issues preferred shares and convertible bonds to finance accumulation, betting the return will exceed the cost of capital. The company's Q1 2026 balance sheet, filed with the SEC on May 5, certified a “BTC Yield” of 9.4% and a net dollar gain of roughly $5 billion in the first four months of the year, a period when Bitcoin was trading below $80,000.
European institutions are beginning to follow a similar path. Intesa Sanpaolo, Italy's largest bank, has disclosed $96 million in Bitcoin ETF exposure through the ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF and the iShares Bitcoin Trust. It isn't a direct corporate treasury in BTC, but it signals direction. MiCA, which entered full force on December 30, 2024, gives EU-licensed entities a clearer compliance framework for digital-asset holdings, something US firms still lack at the federal level.
The Metaplanet Model and Asia's Bitcoin Race
Metaplanet was a struggling hotel company when it pivoted to become a Bitcoin treasury firm. Simon Gerovich, CEO of the Tokyo-listed company, disclosed Q1 2026 figures on April 2 in a post on X:
During Q1 2026, Metaplanet acquired 5075 BTC for $405.48 million at ~$79,898 per bitcoin and has achieved BTC Yield of 2.8% YTD 2026. As of 03/31/2026, we hold 40,177 $BTC acquired for ~$4.18 billion at ~$104,106 per bitcoin. $MPJPY $MTPLF pic.twitter.com/IMxC3lwYCx
— Simon Gerovich (@gerovich) April 2, 2026
In Q1 2026, Metaplanet bought 5,075 BTC at an average of $79,898 per coin, totaling $405.48 million. The company is now the first non-American firm to rank in the global top 3 corporate Bitcoin holders, displacing MARA Holdings. Its stated target is 100,000 BTC by December 2026. The stock has fallen 82% from its 2025 peak, and the average cost basis across the full BTC portfolio stands above $104,000 per coin, per Gerovich's April 2 X post. Gerovich's response to critics centers on a different metric: “Bitcoin per share,” which grew 500% in 2025.
The Risk Few Are Pricing In
Every successful model attracts imitators, and not all of them are equally prepared. Several of the 174 companies on the list acquired Bitcoin at an average cost basis above $90,000, against a May 2026 market price around $80,000. Those are unrealized losses on the balance sheet, categorized as “long-term holdings.” Price volatility is the obvious risk. Less discussed is the structural supply picture.
Consider the concurrent demand streams: according to Bitwise Q1 2026 data, US spot Bitcoin ETFs attracted over $858 million in the single week of May 12. Add 50,351 BTC of net corporate buying in Q1. Bitcoin's issuance schedule doesn't bend to demand. The free-market float keeps contracting.
The date to watch is June 30, 2026, when Metaplanet publishes its semi-annual report. If Gerovich's firm reaches 50,000 BTC by July, it becomes the second-largest non-American public Bitcoin holder in history, definitively ahead of MARA Holdings. Companies still delaying a treasury decision may find themselves, six months from now, competing for a structurally thinner supply at prices that bear little resemblance to today's.
