Glassnode Report Preview: US Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Other Centralized Exchanges Are Now Shaping the Bitcoin Market

As crypto becomes entrenched as a strategic reserve asset, we are excited to offer a first look at our upcoming report with Glassnode analyzing the impact of the US government’s Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and the influence of increased bitcoin buying from sovereign entities, centralized exchanges, and institutional-grade instruments.

The crypto market is at a pivotal moment. Bitcoin hit an all-time high earlier this week. In March, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to create a working group charged with establishing a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve. And other countries have instituted similar programs through either criminal seizure or buying programs.

Against this backdrop, our full report will offer a data‑driven assessment of bitcoin’s onchain performance, benchmark the US proposal against international sovereign reserve models, and touch on the influence of corporate adoptions and ETFs.

Bitcoin Treasuries Now Make Up Almost One Third of Bitcoin Supply

Centralized treasuries, including governments, ETFs, and public companies, now control 30.9% of the circulating supply of bitcoin, signaling an enormous shift toward institutional-grade infrastructure. In turn, this maturation of bitcoin as an asset has further reduced its volatility, which has steadily trended downward over the years.

The report offers a data-driven look at how the formation of the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve has legitimized the concept of the Bitcoin Treasury. These treasuries aren’t chasing short-term price movements; they are helping shape long-term price dynamics. With infrequent movements, and coins acquired via legal seizures rather than purchases, this new type of holder is playing an increasingly important role in the crypto ecosystem.

Sovereign treasuries influence markets through a combination of passive holdings, legal seizures, and strategic policy signals. Unlike active market participants, sovereign treasuries rarely rebalance. Their wallets show infrequent movement and little correlation with bitcoin’s price cycles, yet they hold enough to impact markets when coins are moved or sold.

Centralized Exchanges, ETFs, and Derivatives Now Drive the Majority of Bitcoin Transfer Volumes

Our upcoming report highlights a major structural shift: centralized exchanges, U.S. spot crypto ETFs, and regulated derivatives platforms now account for more than 75% of bitcoin’s adjusted transfer volume, up significantly increase from previous years. Over the past two years, CME‑listed futures and options have expanded more than tenfold as professional investors seek regulated, scalable instruments. The migration underscores how deeply institutional adoption now drives market activity.

As institutional participation has grown, bitcoin market activity has increasingly migrated from onchain settlement to offchain infrastructure. Centralized exchanges, US spot ETFs, and regulated derivatives platforms now serve as the primary sources of both liquidity and risk management.

While these platforms do not fully determine bitcoin’s price, they have changed how the market functions. Liquidity is now deeper, trade execution is more standardized, and investor behavior increasingly resembles that of traditional financial markets.

Stay tuned for the full report next month.

Go Where Dollars Won’t!
Team Gemini