Who Are the Biggest Crypto Whales? Arkham’s $1.6 Trillion Rich List Revealed

Discover Arkham’s rich list of crypto whales holding $1.6T; exchanges, institutions, governments, and names you might not expect.
By Jane Lubale
Published: 11 Sep, 2025 | 11:16:40 AM GMT
Arkham Intelligence reveals Biggest Crypto Whales?

Arkham Intelligence has unveiled a new crypto rich list of the top 100 crypto holders, also referred to as “whales”. Their combined assets are worth around $1.6 trillion. In the list, Arkharm groups wallets into “entities”, instead of ranking single wallets. Entities could be protocols, companies, individuals, or even exchanges. This approach clearly shows who dominates crypto holdings. Let’s break down the crypto whales list and what makes them tick.

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Crypto Rich List: The Top Crypto Whales

Binance tops Arkham’s crypto holder list with around 209 billion. The company is followed by Coinbase, holding crypto worth about $155 billion. This shows crypto exchanges are dominating the market’s assets.

The anonymous Bitcoin creator, Satoshi Nakamoto, falls in the third place, being among those who own the most Bitcoins, holding around $125 billion worth of BTC. Institutional giants are also on the list. BlackRock records around $100 billion, and Fidelity Custody holds about $47 billion. This shows how traditional finance is embracing digital assets.

Decentralized protocols like Lido and Aave have not been left out, holding around $69 billion and $31 billion, respectively. MicroStrategy, popular for holding Bitcoin, as part of the company reserves, appears on the rich list holding about $53 billion in crypto.

Governments are also on the biggest crypto whale list. U.S. and U.K. hold around $23 billion and $6.9 billion, respectively, mostly from stored or seized crypto.  Early investors and crypto-native projects are also represented. Investment groups like Winklevoss Capital hold around $2.2 billion, while newer projects like pump. fun record approximately $3.2 billion.

Top Crypto Whales by Arkham Intelligence
Top Crypto Whales (Source: Arkham Intelligence)

Crypto Whales List: Why It Matters

According to Arkham, entities present a more realistic view of crypto wealth, unlike wallets. Most players on the crypto rich list use many wallets for security or strategy. By adding them together, we can get the real picture of influence. For example, Binance holds the most crypto, $209 billion, because it stores customer deposits and cannot rely on one wallet. Defi protocols and investment firms are demonstrating the increasing players in DeFi and traditional finance.

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Final Thoughts

The crypto whales ranking provides a glimpse of where wealth sits in the industry. It is not just individual billionaires, but about protocols, institutions, exchanges, and few early adopters. This builds up the foundation of the cryptocurrency economy.

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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. Who are the biggest crypto holders?

They include exchanges (Binance, Coinbase), investors (BlackRock, Fidelity), DeFi protocols (Lido, Aave), and early adopters like Satoshi Nakamoto.

2. What is a crypto whale?

What is a crypto whale? A crypto whale is an individual or entity holding a very large amount of cryptocurrency that could influence markets if moved.

3. How does Arkham calculate these holdings?

Arkham groups related wallets into “entities” and values assets by their USD price
Jane Lubale
Jane Lubale is a crypto journalist and SEO content writer at CoinGape, with a strong focus on blockchain, cryptocurrency, FinTech, and Web3 narratives. With 4+ years of experience in the digital finance space, she is known for producing in-depth, well-researched content that bridges technical accuracy with reader-friendly clarity. Jane holds a Master’s in Business Administration, and a degree in Marketing, and blends this background with her passion for market research and digital marketing to deliver engaging price analysis, thought leadership, and educational content. Her work has also been published in leading crypto media such as Insidebitcoin , where she has contributed to the growing conversation around decentralized technologies. With 5+ years of experience in Decentralized Finance (DeFi), Jane's writing is driven by a mission to educate and empower readers with insights that cut through hype and deliver true value. She achieves this in the form of trading strategies, regulatory updates, or blockchain adoption trends. Away from the keyboard, Jane is a proud mother of three boys and is often found mentoring young people on career paths, personal development, and life choices, as well supporting needy teens complete school. She holds modest investments in cryptocurrency, reflecting her belief in the future of digital finance.
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