Harvard Administration Firm switched up its crypto exposure within the fourth quarter of fiscal 12 months 2025, establishing its first place in an Ethereum exchange-traded fund whereas reducing again its Bitcoin holdings, based on a regulatory submitting launched Friday.
The endowment’s funding supervisor bought 3.87 million shares of BlackRock’s iShares Ethereum Belief, a stake valued at $86.8 million as of Dec. 31. The transfer marked Harvard’s first publicly disclosed funding tied to Ethereum.
On the similar time, Harvard reduced its place in BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Belief. The agency held 5.35 million shares value $265.8 million at quarter’s finish, down from 6.81 million shares within the prior quarter. The discount amounted to roughly 1.48 million shares, or about 21%.
Regardless of the trim, Bitcoin remained Harvard’s largest publicly disclosed fairness holding, exceeding the endowment’s reported stakes in main expertise companies reminiscent of Alphabet, Microsoft, and Amazon. Mixed publicity to the 2 cryptocurrency funds totaled $352.6 million on the shut of the quarter.
The portfolio shift befell throughout a turbulent interval for digital belongings. Bitcoin reached a peak close to $126,000 in October 2025 earlier than sliding to $88,429 by Dec. 31, based on Bitcoin Journal Professional information.
Ethereum declined roughly 30% over the identical span.
Bitcoin’s lack of intrinsic worth
In response to Harvard’s The Harvard Crimson, the college’s funding technique has drawn criticism from tutorial observers. Andrew F. Siegel, emeritus professor of finance on the College of Washington, described the endowment’s Bitcoin funding as dangerous, pointing to a 22.8% decline year-to-date and arguing that Bitcoin’s danger stems partially from its lack of intrinsic worth.
Past crypto, Harvard opened a brand new $141 million stake in Union Pacific Company, one of many largest freight rail operators in the US.
The funding adopted Union Pacific’s July 2025 announcement of a deliberate merger with Norfolk Southern, a deal anticipated to create the nation’s first transcontinental railroad community.
The quarter additionally introduced exits from prior holdings. Harvard offered its whole 1.1 million-share stake in Gentle & Surprise, a playing merchandise producer that had been amongst its largest positions, and liquidated a smaller stake in Maze Therapeutics, a biotechnology agency targeted on precision medicines.
Harvard elevated publicity to a number of expertise firms, greater than tripling its stake in Broadcom and elevating holdings in Google and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Firm. The endowment lowered positions in Amazon, Microsoft, and Nvidia.
