According to the latest revelations from the blockchain data analysis platform Arkham Intelligence, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) holds about 6,300 bitcoins, worth approximately $700 million.
Arkham stated on social media platform X that, unlike the United States and Germany, the bitcoins held by the UAE did not come from law enforcement seizures, but from the mining operations run by Citadel Mining, which is majority-owned by the UAE Royal Group through International Holding Company (IHC).
BREAKING: THE UNITED ARAB EMIRATES IS NOW ON ARKHAM
The UAE's $700M BTC holdings are now labeled on Arkham. These holdings come from Bitcoin mining operations carried out by Citadel, a public mining company majority owned by UAE Royal Group through IHC.
Arkham is the first to… pic.twitter.com/eIGut5pJXN
— Arkham (@arkham) August 25, 2025
In the past, rumors circulated that the UAE held up to 420,000 bitcoins through judicial confiscation and other channels, worth over $46 billion, making it likely the world's largest 'national bitcoin holder.' Now the truth is revealed, and the actual holdings are only a small fraction of market speculation.
The mining facility was built in Abu Dhabi
Arkham stated that the team verified the construction timeline of the Citadel mining facility through on-chain transaction records combined with satellite imagery. Citadel, in collaboration with the UAE-listed mining company Phoenix Group and IHC, established a large bitcoin mining facility in Abu Dhabi in 2022 and began mining the same year.
In conjunction with Phoenix Group (a public UAE mining company) and the UAE government-owned IHC, Citadel built an 80,000 square meter bitcoin mining facility on Al Reem Island in Abu Dhabi in 2022 in 6 months.
We were able to corroborate the timeline of on-chain mining activity… pic.twitter.com/MyTJQRzh7K
— Arkham (@arkham) August 25, 2025
According to Arkham's estimates, Citadel has mined a total of about 9,300 bitcoins to date, currently holding about 6,300 coins, indicating that some bitcoins have been transferred or sold.
Citadel Mining's equity structure is also significant: 85% of the company's shares are held by the investment holding company 2pointzero, which itself is under IHC; IHC's major shareholder is the Royal Group, controlled by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, a member of the Abu Dhabi royal family, highlighting the obvious power core background.
Global ranking: second only to Bhutan, ahead of El Salvador
If the news is true, the UAE will be the world's 6th largest 'national bitcoin holder,' slightly below Bhutan (holding about 11,286 coins), but ahead of El Salvador (6,246 coins).
According to BitBo statistics, the top 5 national holders in the world are as follows:
United States: 198,012 coins (mostly from judicial seizures)
China: 194,000 coins (mainly sourced from the PlusToken scam confiscation in 2019)
United Kingdom: 61,245 coins
Ukraine: 46,351 coins
Bhutan: 11,286 coins
"Rising to the '6th largest national whale' through mining? Data: The UAE holds 6,300 bitcoins" This article was first published on (Blockcast).
