Goldman Sachs dumped its positions in XRP and Solana exchange-traded funds during the first quarter of 2026, while also trimming its Bitcoin and Ether ETF holdings, according to the bank’s latest 13F filing. The Wall Street giant instead plowed more capital into publicly traded crypto companies like Circle and Galaxy Digital, signaling a shift in strategy away from direct token exposure.
The ETF exit
The bank’s 13F, filed with the SEC, shows it fully exited XRP and Solana ETFs that it had held at the end of 2025. It also reduced its stakes in Bitcoin and Ether ETFs, though it didn’t exit those entirely. The moves mark a reversal from earlier quarters when Goldman had slowly added exposure to the spot crypto funds. The timing isn’t great for the underlying tokens — XRP and Solana have both lagged broader market gains in 2026.
The equity pivot
Instead of token-linked products, Goldman ramped up holdings in crypto equities. The filing shows new or increased positions in Circle, the stablecoin issuer, and Galaxy Digital, the asset manager led by Mike Novogratz. The shift makes sense: crypto stocks give Goldman exposure to the industry’s growth without the regulatory overhang that still clouds some token ETFs. Circle’s USDC stablecoin business is regulated and profitable; Galaxy runs trading, lending and advisory services.
What the filing reveals
13F filings are backward-looking — this one covers holdings as of March 31, 2026. So the real question is whether Goldman kept rotating in Q2. The bank hasn’t commented publicly on the changes. But the pattern is clear: direct crypto exposure is out, and regulated crypto-adjacent companies are in. It’s a bet that the next wave of institutional adoption will flow through stocks, not spot ETFs.
Whether that bet pays off will be clearer when the next round of institutional disclosures lands in August.
