CoinShares survey: Bitcoin leads growth outlook as sentiment improves

CoinShares' quarterly survey found that average digital-asset allocations rose to 1.3%, up 0.1 percentage point from 1.2% in July 2026. The gain left exposure marginal: the vast majority of reported portfolios remained allocated to traditional assets.

Bitcoin and Ethereum together accounted for 47% of portfolio-positioning responses. Bitcoin ranked first for growth expectations, while fund managers gave it the strongest directional preference in the survey. Ethereum and Solana each registered modest sentiment improvements compared with earlier editions.

What drove the increase in allocations?

Diversification emerged as the primary reason for investing, cited by 40% of respondents. CoinShares said the shift was especially visible among family offices and individual investors.

Speculative motives fell below 9% and ranked fifth among the reasons managers gave. CoinShares attributed the small rise in average allocation to this diversification focus rather than to speculative appetite. The quarter's marginal increase therefore reflected portfolio construction rather than a broad rise in risk-taking.

Where did interest shift beyond the majors?

Managers pulled back from multi-asset strategies and some older altcoins as preferences tilted toward newer names. The survey flagged six names as drawing increased interest:

• Hyperliquid: A newer name attracting more interest from respondents.
• $SUI: A token associated with a general-purpose network competing for developers and users.
• Uniswap: A decentralized-finance protocol for trading.
• $NEAR: A token associated with a general-purpose network competing for developers and users.
• Aave: A decentralized-finance protocol for lending.
• Chainlink: A provider of external data to blockchains.

The survey did not publish allocation sizes for these names. Its evidence was directional: respondents showed more interest while moving away from broad multi-asset strategies and some older altcoins. That is separate from the 1.3% portfolio average and the combined 47% share recorded for Bitcoin and Ethereum.

The survey also separates the scale of exposure from its concentration. A 1.3% average allocation can coexist with a 47% Bitcoin-Ethereum share because the measures address different decisions: how much of a portfolio goes to digital assets and where that exposure is positioned.

What does Bitcoin's lead mean for institutional flows?

The 47% combined share supports the expectation that Bitcoin and Ethereum will continue to absorb most institutional flows. Bitcoin's first-place growth ranking gives it the clearest positive signal in the results, while Ethereum's improving sentiment suggests continued demand beyond Bitcoin alone. The combined figure does not disclose either asset's separate positioning share.

Managers also showed willingness to make targeted bets beyond the majors through Hyperliquid, $SUI and $NEAR. The pattern shows selective extension of institutional exposure, not a wholesale retreat from Bitcoin and Ethereum. It also preserves diversification as the stated leading motive.

Why does the retreat from broad baskets matter?

Managers appear to prefer choosing specific assets over buying broad baskets that combine projects of varying quality. For allocators, that points toward more security selection within digital assets and less reliance on multi-asset products spanning established and newer tokens. Newer projects can therefore attract incremental allocations without requiring a broad withdrawal from the majors.

CoinShares has run the survey quarterly since 2021 to track how institutional attitudes toward digital assets evolve. The next quarterly edition will test whether the 1.3% allocation, the 47% concentration in Bitcoin and Ethereum and the turn toward specific newer assets persist.