40+ Countries Have Committed to Bitcoin, Coinbase Says

John D’Agostino, Coinbase’s head of institutional strategy, said in a late-June interview that more than 40 countries have committed in some form to adding bitcoin to national balance sheets or related state holdings. Public trackers list a smaller number of confirmed government holders and show about 649,946 BTC held by 13 governments, valued near $37.9 billion at recent prices.

D’Agostino described the pattern as steady institutional interest rather than a string of headline-making announcements. ‘We’ve seen over 40 countries commit to buying bitcoin in some fashion for their national balance sheets or other,’ he said, and added that many of the actions he sees are gradual and quiet rather than large, public purchases.

The distinction between a commitment and a confirmed holding is central to the differing counts. A widely used tracker currently attributes roughly 649,946 BTC to 13 government entities. The largest reported pool is about 328,372 BTC attributed to the United States, much of it stemming from law enforcement seizures and later placed into a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve under a 2025 executive order. Other reported government balances include roughly 61,245 BTC for the United Kingdom, about 7,698 BTC for El Salvador, near 6,420 BTC for the United Arab Emirates, and close to 4,973 BTC for Bhutan. Some of those figures have been contested.

Analysts and independent researchers have flagged disputes and errors in public attributions. One analytics firm reported Bhutan’s holdings may be lower after alleged sales. Prior claims that China controls large, verifiable bitcoin reserves have not been substantiated. Reports that attributed tens of thousands of bitcoin to Ukraine were later traced to holdings linked to individual public officials rather than state reserves. Many of the largest government-linked bitcoin pools originated from seizures by law enforcement rather than from direct sovereign purchases.

A separate survey of government exposure published in late 2025 counted about 23 nation-states with some bitcoin exposure through seizures, direct buys, state-backed mining or sovereign fund allocations, and estimated government-controlled supply near 432,000 BTC, or about 2.1% of all bitcoin in circulation.

Market participants note that D’Agostino’s “over 40” figure appears to combine confirmed holdings with a broader set of countries that have signaled intent through policy proposals, pilot programs, small treasury tests or accumulation by state-linked entities. Examples raised by analysts include small treasury tests by central banks and acquisition activity by family offices and sovereign funds in the UAE.

Observers say confirmation of new sovereign holdings will come through public disclosures and reported transactions rather than intent statements. Traders and investors are watching for announcements from central banks, finance ministries and sovereign funds that would convert policy signals into open-market purchases.