The small country of Bhutan is quietly selling off its bitcoins, and the stack is getting scarcer every month.
The Royal Government of Bhutan moved 175 BTC worth $11.85 million late on Monday, according to data from Arkham Intelligence, moving assets to the same bc1q wallet address that received 184 BTC worth $14.09 million in February. Suggests a consistent treasury management or over-the-counter counterpart.
The activity is carried out by Bhutan’s state investment arm, Druk Holding and Investments (DHI), which spearheads the country’s BTC mining operations.
February’s activity was more extensive than a single transfer. Arkham’s output data shows four separate moves that month: the transfer of 184 BTC, two transfers to QCP Capital’s trading deposit address totaling approximately 200 BTC worth a combined $15 million, and a transfer of $1.5 million of USDT to a Binance hot wallet.
That equates to about $30.7 million in February alone, followed by $11.85 million on Monday, bringing capital outflows in 2026 to about $42.5 million.
QCP Capital transfers stand out because sending bitcoins to a trading company’s deposit address twice in a month is more active than simple treasury withdrawals. It suggests OTC sales or structured liquidity management instead of simply moving coins between cold wallets.
However, the balance history graph tells a bigger story.
Bhutan’s stack peaked at around 13,000 BTC in late 2024, accumulated over several years through state-backed hydro mining. The reduction began in earnest after October 2024 and has been pronounced.
From 13,000 to approximately 5,400 is a 58% reduction in coins. The value of the dollar has been hit twice, by selling and by bitcoin falling from around $119,000 at its peak to $69,000 today.
What was likely a position valued at more than $1.5 billion at its peak is now $374 million.
In December, Bhutan unveiled a National Bitcoin Development Commitment committing up to 10,000 BTC to fund Gelephu Mindfulness City, a special economic zone designed to use digital assets for its financial reserves.
Bhutan mined its currencies using surplus hydropower, meaning the base cost is effectively zero. Unlike Strategy or the corporate treasuries that bought at market prices, there is no equilibrium math that pressures these sales. Every transfer is profit.
Arkham’s balance chart shows the full arc. A slow accumulation from near zero in early 2021, a steady accumulation through the bear market, a ramp up to about 13,000 BTC in late 2024, and then a sharp drop that hasn’t let up.
The transfers have been directed to the same counterparties in similar sizes without any obvious correlation to specific price movements, looking more like a Treasury executing a planned reduction than a fork being shaken.
Druk Holdings did not immediately respond to CoinDesk’s request for comment in the Asian morning hours.
