Goldman Sachs cut XRP ETF exposure to zero in Q1 2026, while trimming Bitcoin and Ether ETF positions. The bank rotated into crypto-linked equities like Circle and Coinbase.
Goldman Sachs no longer reported any XRP-linked ETF holdings in its Q1 2026 Form 13F, according to the filing details cited by crypto.news. The bank had ended Q4 2025 with nearly $154 million across XRP products from Bitwise, Franklin Templeton, Grayscale and 21Shares. The change marks a fast reversal from its earlier altcoin ETF move. In April, U.S. spot XRP ETFs had reached $1.53 billion in assets, while Goldman Sachs was the largest known institutional holder with $153.8 million spread across four funds.
The Q1 filing shows a clean exit from all four XRP ETF positions. The bank did not report any shares in the Bitwise XRP ETF, Franklin XRP ETF, Grayscale XRP Trust or the 21Shares XRP ETF. That is a complete liquidation of a position that represented roughly 10% of the total spot XRP ETF market at the end of 2025.
The 13F is a quarterly report of U.S. equity holdings filed with the SEC. It captures positions as of the last trading day of the quarter. Goldman Sachs filed its Q1 report on May 15, 2026, showing holdings as of March 31. The absence of XRP ETFs means the bank sold or let expire its exposure sometime between January 1 and March 31.
Goldman Sachs was the single largest institutional holder of spot XRP ETFs. Its exit removes a key stamp of institutional legitimacy for the asset class. The move comes after XRP ETFs saw mixed flows in Q1, with total net inflows of about $200 million across all issuers, according to crypto.news data. Without Goldman, the remaining institutional holders are smaller funds and retail-heavy platforms.
Risk to watch: If other large filers follow Goldman's lead in Q2, XRP ETF liquidity could thin, widening bid-ask spreads and increasing execution risk for traders using these products.
Goldman Sachs still held Bitcoin ETF exposure at the end of Q1. The bank reported about $690 million in BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) and around $25 million in Fidelity’s Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC), even after reducing both positions by roughly 10%.
Its Ether ETF position fell more dramatically. Goldman cut its BlackRock iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHA) holding by about 70%, leaving roughly 7.2 million shares valued near $114 million. The move came as crypto.news reported that Ethereum ETFs saw $255.11 million in outflows during the week ending May 15.
Practical rule: A 70% reduction in a single quarter is not a tactical trim. It signals a structural reallocation away from direct crypto ETF exposure, at least at the margin.
Goldman did not leave crypto-linked markets fully. It raised exposure to several public companies tied to digital assets, including Circle, Galaxy Digital, Coinbase, Robinhood and PayPal. That mix gives Goldman exposure to trading, payments and stablecoin-linked business lines.
At the same time, Goldman reduced stakes in several mining and infrastructure names:
The filing points to a cleaner focus on listed companies with clearer revenue lines than some mining-heavy names. IREN (Alpha Score 34/100, label Weak) saw its position cut, consistent with the bank's shift toward more established financial intermediaries.
Goldman's rotation suggests it sees better risk-adjusted returns in crypto-adjacent equities than in direct ETF exposure or mining stocks. That is a relative-value call, not a bearish view on crypto itself. The bank still holds $690 million in Bitcoin ETFs, so the core conviction in Bitcoin remains intact.
Key insight: The move from XRP and Ether ETFs into Coinbase and Circle is a bet on the infrastructure layer, not the asset layer. Traders should watch whether other institutional filers show the same pattern in Q2.
The move does not mean Wall Street has stepped away from crypto ETFs. crypto.news reported that Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala raised its BlackRock Bitcoin ETF position 16% to $565.6 million in Q1, adding about 2 million IBIT shares during the same reporting period. That shows demand from sovereign wealth funds remains strong.
Goldman’s own crypto activity also remains broader than one filing. Reuters reported in April that Goldman Sachs filed for a Bitcoin ETF product designed to give Bitcoin exposure and income from options trades. That product, if approved, would give Goldman a new way to offer crypto exposure without holding the underlying ETFs on its own balance sheet.
Still, 13F filings carry limits. The SEC notice says it has “not necessarily reviewed” the filing, so the data shows reported positions at quarter-end, not current holdings or intent. Goldman could have re-entered XRP ETFs in April or May. The filing is a backward-looking snapshot, not a forward guide.
Bottom line for traders: The Q1 13F shows Goldman Sachs rotated out of XRP and Ether ETFs while trimming Bitcoin ETFs, and rotated into crypto-linked equities. The signal is a preference for regulated intermediaries over direct token exposure. Traders using XRP ETFs should monitor Q2 filings from other large holders for confirmation of a broader trend.
For more context on the crypto ETF landscape, see AlphaScala's crypto market analysis and the Bitcoin (BTC) profile. Goldman Sachs itself carries an Alpha Score of 54/100 (label Mixed) on AlphaScala's GS stock page. IREN, which Goldman cut, scores 34/100 (label Weak) on its IREN stock page.
Prepared with AlphaScala research tooling and grounded in primary market data: live prices, fundamentals, SEC filings, hedge-fund holdings, and insider activity. Each story is checked against AlphaScala publishing rules before release. Educational coverage, not personalized advice.