Did Goldman Sachs already fully clear out XRP and SOL—can institutions still be trusted?

Three months ago, they were still the “largest institutional holders.” Three months later, there was “not a single share left.” This move by Wall Street left the altcoin believers rushing to follow the herd completely off guard.

Wall Street’s mouth, and the con artists behind it.

While the market was still circulating the narrative that “Goldman Sachs is bullish on the spring of altcoins,” the real “smart money” had already quietly slipped away. The 13F filing for Q1 2026 that Goldman Sachs has just submitted to the SEC is like a deep-sea bomb—it directly blew a large hole in altcoin believers’ faith.

From “largest holder” to “fully cleared out,” it only took 90 days

Rewind to the end of last year, when the slogan for “the altcoin ETF’s first year” was being shouted loud. As a top-tier Wall Street investment bank, Goldman Sachs made a big move: it invested nearly $154 million to buy XRP ETFs from multiple institutions, including Bitwise, Franklin Templeton, Grayscale, and others. At one point, it became one of the biggest institutional holders of XRP ETFs.

Back then, the entire internet was celebrating: “Look! Wall Street is really buying! Altcoin season is here!”

However, just one quarter later, this filing was like a bucket of ice water: all XRP and Solana ETF positions were wiped to zero—nothing left, not a single share.

This kind of operation—“a high-profile entry, a lightning-fast exit”—is even more decisive than many short-term retail traders. The funds that saw Goldman Sachs’ name and rushed in to “copy the play” probably hadn’t even reacted before they were already left holding the bag at the top.

A brutal “elimination match”: who is swimming naked is obvious

Goldman Sachs hasn’t completely withdrawn from the crypto market, but it has drawn an extremely cold “contempt chain” using its positioning.

Bitcoin
Still that “one true god.” Goldman Sachs currently still holds about $690 million worth of BlackRock’s IBIT and $25 million worth of Fidelity’s FBTC. Even though its quarter-over-quarter reduction is also about 10%, it remains the “cornerstone” in its crypto holdings.

Ethereum’s situation is more awkward. Goldman Sachs slashed its Ethereum ETF holdings by 70%, from roughly $1 billion in the previous quarter down to $114 million. The scale of this cut carries a decisive message of “no longer interested—period.”

As for XRP and Solana, they were directly assigned to the “high-risk elimination zone,” and were fully cleared out. Hidden inside this is a gut-punching signal: in the eyes of these top Wall Street dealmakers, only Bitcoin is worth keeping as “core assets.” Ethereum has already become “second-rate products” that can be discarded at any time, and other altcoins don’t even deserve to appear in the dictionary of long-term investments.

Where did the money go? Wall Street is switching to a different play

If you think Goldman Sachs is about to run away, you might only be right halfway.
Looking closely at this 13F filing, the money didn’t disappear out of thin air—it shifted to another lane. Goldman Sachs is aggressively adding to positions in companies that “sell shovels,” not mining or betting on coin prices:
Circle: holdings surged **249%**
(This is the issuer of USDC—the real “money printer.”)

Galaxy Digital: increased holdings by 205% (a provider of financial services for cryptocurrencies). It also increased stakes in Coinbase, Robinhood, and PayPal.

Meanwhile, in the list of things being reduced, besides altcoin ETFs, Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy), Riot Platforms, and a range of other “large coin holders” and mining companies are also sitting there.

With this increase and decrease, Wall Street’s logic has already been laid bare:
In a volatile market, rather than betting on whether a particular token will rise or fall, it’s better to earn “steady” trading fees and stablecoin management fees. When miners and coin hoarders are suffering in the bear market, the service providers that supply the market with “water and electricity” end up becoming the favorites in Goldman Sachs’ eyes.

Can institutions’ words still be trusted?

This latest earnings report may help cool down the feverish market.
Institutions are indeed here, but they’re not here to do “long-term value investing.” Giants like Goldman Sachs are playing asset allocation and short-term arbitrage. Buying into XRP three months ago may have been only to hedge against some risk—or simply to ride the hype and traffic around ETF approvals. Once the trend is over, or if the situation turns unfavorable, they run faster than anyone else.

For ordinary investors, the value of the phrase “Goldman Sachs is buying” is shrinking rapidly. Today’s “institutional bull” narrative—if it’s built on altcoins that could be cleared out at any moment—is destined to be a fragile illusion.

When the tide goes out, not only can you see who was swimming naked—you can also see who already took off their swim trunks to cash out.