Arkham says bitcoin mining operations linked to the UAE’s Royal Group are sitting on about $344 million in unrealized profit, excluding energy costs.
What Arkham says the UAE holds
Arkham’s onchain data shows the UAE Royal Group holds about 6,782 BTC, valued at roughly $453.6 million at the time of the report.
The data also showed a steady production rate of about 4.2 BTC per day over the prior seven days.
Arkham added that the UAE appears to be retaining most of its self-mined bitcoin, with onchain records showing the last fund outflow occurred four months ago.
How the mining footprint formed
The UAE’s mining push was traced to 2022, when Citadel Mining—an entity tied to Abu Dhabi’s royal family—set up large-scale operations on Al Reem Island.
In 2023, Marathon Digital Holdings and Abu Dhabi-based Zero Two announced a joint venture to develop 250 megawatts of immersion-cooled mining capacity in the UAE.
Earlier estimates and supply context
Arkham said its latest figures revise down an earlier estimate from August 2025, when it attributed about $700 million in mined bitcoin to the UAE during a period of higher bitcoin prices.
At that time, Arkham reported the UAE had mined about 9,300 BTC and held about 6,300 BTC, ranking it fourth among government entities with verified onchain holdings.
Arkham’s current estimate implies the UAE’s holdings represent about 0.03% of bitcoin’s total supply.
Other sovereign miners and holders
Arkham noted Bhutan began mining in 2019 via Druk Holding & Investments using hydroelectric power, and that since the start of 2026 Bhutan has sold bitcoin for three consecutive weeks totaling about $29 million.
Over the past five months, Bhutan has sold more than $100 million in bitcoin and now holds about 5,600 BTC valued at $375 million, per Arkham.
Arkham also said the U.S. government ranks first among sovereign holders with 328,000 BTC valued at $22 billion, with holdings tied to seizures including the Bitfinex hack and Silk Road-related cases.
