Czech central bank has invested $18,1 million in shares of Coinbase during Q2

What’s new? The Czech National Bank has begun investing in shares of the leading US centralized crypto exchange Coinbase (COIN) during the second quarter of 2025. According to its Form 13F filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the central bank bought 51 732 COIN during the period.

Report to the SEC

What else is known? The securities were worth $18,1 million at the end of June, but are currently valued at around $20 million based on the closing price on July 14.

This is the first purchase of Coinbase shares by the Czech central bank in history.

The country has recently become more open to exploring cryptocurrencies. In January, the central bank approved a proposal to evaluate investing its reserves in additional asset classes, including bitcoin.

At the time, the regulator’s head, Aleš Michl, said the central bank intended to diversify its reserves. In an interview with the FT, he said the bank could potentially allocate up to 5% of its 140 billion EUR ($163,5 billion) reserves to BTC after approval from the governing council.

Later, Central Bank board member Jan Kubicek questioned the suitability of bitcoin as a reserve asset due to legal uncertainty and volatility.

Coinbase shares are up 40% in a month and have hit an all-time high

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Late last year, the lower house of the Czech Parliament passed a crypto regulation law aimed at developing the country as a crypto hub. It appoints the central bank as the main supervisory body, introduces tax incentives for crypto firms, and guarantees them access to banking services.

And in February this year, Czech President Petr Pavel signed a law exempting bitcoins from capital gains tax if they have been owned for at least three years and allowing investors not to report transactions of less than 100 000 crowns ($3900).

Corporate bitcoin accumulations reached 847 000 BTC in the second quarter

Companies added a record 159 107 coins to their balance sheets during the reporting period

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In the spring, there was a cryptocurrency-related scandal in the Czech government. In late May, Justice Minister Pavel Blažek resigned after his department sold $45 million worth of bitcoins donated by Tomáš Jiříkovský, who was convicted of drug trafficking in 2017 and ran the dark web marketplace Sheep Marketplace.

Although the agency has channeled the proceeds of the sale to compensate victims and fund prisons, opposition lawmakers questioned the legality of receiving assets from a former criminal.

Blažek insisted that the donation was under Czech law and could be seen as reparations from the donor, but resigned so as not “to damage the reputation of the government or the governing coalition.”

Despite the decision, the opposition ANO party, led by former Prime Minister Andrej Babiš, called for a vote of no confidence in current Prime Minister Petr Fiala.