Part 2 of 3: SMSFs and Australian businesses are becoming institutional-style crypto investors

In Part 1 of this three-part series unpacking the BTC Markets Investor Study Report 2025, we discussed how Australia’s crypto investor demographics are shifting. Part 2 reveals something even more consequential: Self-managed super funds (SMSFs), companies, and sole traders are now behaving like institutional allocators, incorporating digital assets as a deliberate alternative investment strategy.

The change is visible in the size of their trades, the consistency of their activity, the concentration of their holdings, and the long-term mindset influencing their decisions. These groups are building structured, deliberate positions in digital assets, well ahead of Australia’s regulatory curve.

SMSFs are powering institutional-style growth

SMSFs have long been one of Australia’s most conservative investor cohorts. Yet on-chain and platform activity tells a different story this year.

SMSF registrations on BTC Markets rose 69% in FY24-25, and their trading volume increased 151% year-on-year. Average portfolio values climbed 46%. The momentum is unmistakable, but the behaviour underneath is what stands out. These investors are executing larger trades, concentrating their exposure to top assets like Bitcoin, Ethereum and XRP, and building positions with a long-term, retirement-focused lens.

SMSFs are now approaching crypto the same way they approach equities, fixed income or alternatives: with defined objectives and a clear strategy. In practice, their behaviour resembles institutional allocation far more than retail trading.

Companies and sole traders follow the same pattern

The shift is not limited to the superannuation sector. Company accounts also showed a significant uplift in engagement, with portfolio values rising 44% over the year. Corporate Bitcoin allocations alone increased 138% between December 2023 and June 2025. They reflect treasury decisions that mirror global trends, where listed companies and financial institutions are integrating digital assets into their capital management mix.

Sole traders are displaying similar behaviour, albeit on a smaller scale. They trade less frequently but are allocating them with increasing confidence. Their patterns echo what we see among professional investors abroad: fewer trades, larger sizes, and a focus on liquidity and longevity over experimentation.

Together, companies and sole traders demonstrate that crypto adoption in Australia is broadening beyond individual portfolios and into the operational and treasury decisions of businesses.

Institutional behaviour is taking hold

The most interesting part of this trend is its timing. Australia is still waiting for comprehensive, national-level digital asset regulation. Yet investor behaviour, particularly among SMSFs and businesses, has already shifted into a more institutional posture.

This mirrors what we’ve observed in the United States, the UAE, Hong Kong and the UK, where institutions moved early, often well before regulatory frameworks were fully established. Investors responded to market structure, liquidity, and product availability long before they responded to policy.

We’re seeing the same dynamic here. The market is maturing from the bottom up, not the top down.

Institutional-style behaviour from SMSFs, companies and sole traders signal a deeper transition in Australia’s digital asset ecosystem. Larger and more consistent capital flows are entering the market, and they’re entering with long-term intent.

In many ways, this is the foundation for the next cycle of adoption. Once regulation catches up, the infrastructure, investor base and behavioural patterns will already be in place.

The takeaway for investors is not speed, but structure. As SMSFs and businesses adopt institutional-style behaviours, digital assets are increasingly being assessed through the same lens as other alternatives: portfolio role, allocation size and long-term risk management. Those questions, rather than short-term price moves, will define the next phase of participation.

ENDS

In Part 3, we’ll explore the global regulatory race, and why Australia’s stance will determine how far institutional momentum can go.