United Arab Emirates quietly accumulated almost half a billion dollars in Bitcoin

The United Arab Emirates discreetly accumulated about US$ 453 million in Bitcoin, according to Arkham. The intelligence company claims that mining operations linked to the Royal Group hold approximately 6,782 BTC, with around US$ 344 million in unrealized profits - a calculation that takes into account the difference between the current price and the estimated cost of production, but disregards energy and operating expenses.

On-chain data from Arkham indicates stable mining production, with around 4.2 BTC generated per day in the last week by Emirates-linked wallets, indicating continued industrial operations. According to the company, most of the Bitcoin mined has been kept internally, with no records of outflows from these wallets for approximately four months.

The data shows that The United Arab Emirates has adopted a different strategy from other governments with large Bitcoin reserves. Unlike countries that accumulate assets mainly through judicial seizures or purchases (such as El Salvador), the country has expanded its position via domestic mining.

This movement gained momentum in 2022, with the installation of large-scale operations on Al Reem Island by an entity linked to the Abu Dhabi royal family, as part of a wider regional effort to attract digital asset infrastructure backed by state capital.

In 2023, Marathon Digital and Zero Two, from Abu Dhabi, announced a joint venture to implement 250 megawatts of immersion-cooled Bitcoin mining in the UAE, in one of the largest industrial projects of its kind in the region, reinforcing the country's ambition to consolidate itself as a crypto infrastructure hub.

Arkham reviewed down from its estimate made in August 2025, when it attributed around US$ 700 million in mined Bitcoin to the Emirates, in a context of higher prices. At the time, the country would have mined approximately 9,300 BTC and held around 6,300 BTC. With the updated data, the reserves represent about 0.03% of the total Bitcoin supply.

Beyond mining, Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth funds have increased their exposure to BlackRock's BTC ETF iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT). As of December 31, they reported 12.7 million shares - valued at about US$ 630.6 million -an increase of 46% compared to the end of September. Mubadala, which manages a diversified global portfolio, is among the participants in this movement.