In a twist that has left the crypto community both amused and intrigued, Vanguard Group—the $10 trillion asset management behemoth famously skeptical of Bitcoin—has quietly become the largest institutional shareholder of MicroStrategy (NASDAQ: MSTR), a company whose sole strategy revolves around accumulating Bitcoin. According to Bloomberg, Vanguard now holds over 20 million shares of MSTR, an 8% stake worth approximately $9.26 billion, surpassing Capital Group as the top institutional holder .
This development is particularly ironic given Vanguard’s longstanding resistance to cryptocurrency investments. The firm has repeatedly blocked its clients from accessing spot Bitcoin ETFs, citing Bitcoin’s lack of cash flow and its unsuitability for long-term investors. Yet, through its passive index funds—such as the Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund (VITSX) and Vanguard Growth ETF (VUG)—the company now holds a massive indirect exposure to Bitcoin via MicroStrategy’s aggressive BTC accumulation strategy .
MicroStrategy, led by Bitcoin maximalist Michael Saylor, has transformed itself into a de facto Bitcoin holding company, amassing over 600,000 BTC (worth roughly $72 billion as of July 2025) since 2020. Its stock has become a proxy for Bitcoin exposure, especially before the U.S. approved spot Bitcoin ETFs in early 2024 .
Vanguard’s stake in MSTR is purely incidental—a byproduct of its passive indexing strategy. As Eric Balchunas, a Bloomberg ETF analyst, wryly noted: "God has a sense of humor. Vanguard chose this life. When you have an index fund, you have to own all the stocks, for better or worse, and that includes stocks you may not like or approve of personally".
Matthew Sigel, head of digital asset research at VanEck, was less diplomatic, calling the situation "institutional dementia." He quipped on X: "Indexing into $9 billion of what you openly mock isn’t strategy".
Despite this unintentional Bitcoin exposure, Vanguard remains steadfast in its refusal to embrace crypto directly. CEO Salim Ramji, who joined the firm in mid-2024 after helping launch BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), has doubled down on Vanguard’s traditionalist stance. In a recent interview, he stated:
"We don’t have a gold ETF. We don’t have a silver ETF. And so it’s a logical extension then as to why we don’t have ETFs in other things that don’t either deliver cash flow or have the prospect of delivering cash flow".
This position stands in stark contrast to BlackRock, which has seen its IBIT ETF surge to over $76 billion in assets under management (AUM)—making it the fastest-growing ETF in history.
The crypto market has taken notice of Vanguard’s paradoxical position. Some analysts argue that the firm’s massive MSTR stake could inadvertently strengthen Bitcoin’s legitimacy as an institutional asset, even if Vanguard itself refuses to acknowledge it. Meanwhile, Bitcoin continues its upward trajectory, trading above $117,000 as of July 2025, with predictions of reaching $200,000 by year-end gaining traction.
MicroStrategy’s stock, up 17% year-to-date, has benefited from Bitcoin’s rally, further enriching Vanguard’s passive investors . The question now is whether Vanguard will maintain its anti-crypto stance or quietly accept that its index funds are already deeply entwined with Bitcoin’s fate.
With Bitcoin adoption accelerating—evidenced by national reserves, corporate treasuries, and ETF inflows—Vanguard’s resistance may become increasingly untenable. If Bitcoin’s price surges further, pressure could mount on the firm to reconsider its stance, if only to remain competitive with rivals like BlackRock and Fidelity.
For now, Vanguard’s $9.26 billion Bitcoin bet remains an accidental—and highly ironic—testament to the crypto asset’s creeping inevitability in global finance.
Share your thoughts on our X: Should Vanguard embrace Bitcoin ETFs, or is its passive exposure enough?
Disclaimer: The information provided in this section is for reference only and does not represent any investment advice or the official views of FameEX.
Sources:
Bloomberg: Vanguard Goes Big on Crypto Thanks to Index Boom It Unleashed
AInvest: Vanguard Largest Institutional Shareholder Bitcoin-Focused Strategy 8% Stake
CryptoBriefing: Vanguard Bitcoin Proxy Strategy Shares
AInvest: Vanguard Benefits 17% Bitcoin Rally MicroStrategy Criticism
CoinCentral: Vanguard’s Bitcoin Exposure Raises Eyebrows Despite Its Crypto Stance
