The UAE holds around 6,300 BTC, valued at approximately $700 million, primarily acquired through Bitcoin mining, not seizures.
Citadel Mining, with strong ties to Abu Dhabi’s royal family, leads the UAE’s mining operations.
The UAE ranks 6th globally among countries holding Bitcoin.
The previous estimate of 420,000 BTC held by the UAE has been debunked by Arkham’s blockchain analysis.
The country’s proactive approach to mining highlights its long-term strategy in digital assets and blockchain infrastructure.
The UAE currently holds approximately 6,300 BTC, mined primarily through operations conducted by Citadel Mining, a company backed by the UAE government through a complex web of ownership.
Source: X (@arkham)
Unlike the United States and United Kingdom, which amassed significant Bitcoin through police seizures and criminal asset recovery, the UAE’s Bitcoin holdings are tied to actual mining efforts.
As per Arkham’s official announcement:
“Unlike the US and UK, the UAE’s holdings do not come from police asset seizures but from mining operations with Citadel Mining.”
Arkham estimates that Citadel Mining has generated around 9,300 BTC in total. However, only 6,300 BTC are currently held in wallets publicly attributed to the UAE government. The rest may have been sold, transferred, or otherwise distributed.
These numbers are far less than past speculations. Rumors once suggested the UAE controlled as much as 420,000 BTC, largely based on assumptions around international criminal seizures. This would have made the UAE the largest nation-state Bitcoin holder.
The mining operations are largely conducted through Citadel Mining, which is 85% owned by 2pointzero, a subsidiary of the International Holding Company (IHC).
The IHC itself is owned by the Royal Group, a conglomerate chaired by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, a key figure in Abu Dhabi’s royal family.
Citadel partnered with Phoenix Group, a public UAE-based mining company, to build out mining facilities in Abu Dhabi in 2022. Arkham used on-chain activity and satellite imagery to verify the timeline and scale of mining operations.
Arkham reported:
“We were able to corroborate the timeline of on-chain mining activity with time-lapse satellite imagery of facility construction.”
Source: X (@arkham)
These findings also align with the public filings and transaction data between Phoenix and Citadel, further confirming the legitimacy and scale of the UAE’s Bitcoin mining operation.
According to BitBo, the UAE now ranks sixth among nation-state Bitcoin holders. Here’s a look at how the UAE stacks up globally:
Together, sovereign nations are estimated to hold around 517,000 BTC, which represents 2.4% of Bitcoin’s total supply, valued at more than $56 billion.
While the UAE and other countries continue to accumulate Bitcoin, they still trail behind private holders and corporations.
Satoshi Nakamoto, Bitcoin’s anonymous creator, is believed to control over 1.096 million BTC.
MicroStrategy, led by Michael Saylor, holds 629,376 BTC, making it the largest corporate Bitcoin treasury in the world—equivalent to 2.9% of the total supply.
The UAE holds approximately 6,300 BTC, worth about $700 million, according to Arkham Intelligence.
The UAE primarily mines Bitcoin through government-backed companies such as Citadel Mining, unlike some countries that acquire BTC through seizures.
Citadel Mining is 85% owned by 2pointzero, a subsidiary of International Holding Company (IHC), which is partially owned by the UAE Royal Group.
Major mining infrastructure, led by Citadel and Phoenix Group, began construction in 2022.
The UAE ranks sixth, behind countries like the US, China, and the UK, based on disclosed and verified holdings.
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