Quick Facts / Company Snapshot
- Company Name: BitGo Holdings, Inc.
- Ticker Symbol: BTGO (NYSE)
- Headquarters: 101 S. Reid Street, Suite 307, PMB# 9793, Sioux Falls, SD 57103
- Phone: (650) 847-0009
- Founded: 2013
- Incorporation State: Delaware
- CEO & Co-Founder: Michael A. Belshe
- Core Business: Digital Asset Infrastructure, Custody, and Financial Services
- Key Regulatory Status: Nationally Chartered Trust Bank (BitGo Bank & Trust, N.A.)
- New York Entity: BitGo New York Trust Company, LLC (NYDFS Regulated)
- Singapore Entity: BitGo Singapore Pte. Ltd. (Major Payment Institution)
- Total Expenses (2024): $3,088.0 million
- Estimated Total Expenses (2025): $16.02 billion – $16.09 billion
- Staking Fees Revenue (2024): $419.3 million
- Subscription & Services Revenue (2024): $77.4 million
- Estimated Staking Revenue (2025): $328.7 million – $346.0 million
- Net Income (2024): $156 million (approximate based on filing context)
- Voting Control: Michael Belshe controls ~55.5% of voting power
- Corporate Governance Status: “Controlled Company” under NYSE rules
Company Overview
BitGo Holdings, Inc. stands as a foundational pillar of the digital asset economy. Originally established in 2013 as a wallet software provider, the company has evolved into a comprehensive digital asset financial services institution. BitGo provides institutional-grade custody, trading, staking, and settlement infrastructure to a global client base that includes cryptocurrency exchanges, retail platforms, buy-side institutions, and financial intermediaries.
The company distinguishes itself through a focus on regulatory compliance and security. It was the first digital asset company to focus exclusively on serving institutional clients, moving away from the retail exchange model common in the industry. BitGo operates as an independent custodian, ensuring a separation of duties that mitigates counterparty risk—a critical value proposition following the collapse of several integrated exchange-custodians in the broader market.
BitGo’s operational philosophy is built on “trust” and “security.” By securing billions of dollars in digital assets, BitGo acts as the operational backbone for over 1,500 institutional clients in 50 countries. The company has successfully transitioned from a technology vendor to a regulated trust company and prime broker, bridging the gap between traditional finance (TradFi) and the decentralized future of finance (DeFi).
Key operational highlights include:
- Qualified Custody: Offering cold storage solutions through regulated trust entities.
- Settlement: Facilitating off-exchange settlement to reduce counterparty risk.
- Staking: Providing non-custodial and custodial staking services.
- Prime Services: Offering trading, lending, and borrowing.
Business Segments
BitGo reports its operations through several distinct service lines. The revenue model has shifted significantly with the introduction of new services in 2025.
1. Staking and Delegating
This segment represents a significant portion of BitGo’s service-based revenue. BitGo enables clients to participate in blockchain networks (such as Ethereum) by locking or “staking” assets to validate transactions and secure the network. In return, clients earn rewards, and BitGo retains a percentage as a commission.
- Operational Scope: BitGo operates validators and infrastructure to support staking across various protocols. This service is technically complex, requiring high uptime to avoid “slashing” penalties.
- 2024 Revenue: $419.3 million
- 2025 Estimated Revenue: $328.7 million – $346.0 million
- Growth Trend: A projected decrease of approximately $82 million (using the midpoint) in 2025 compared to 2024.
- Performance Driver: Revenue fluctuates based on the price of the underlying staked assets and the overall network activity levels.
2. Subscription and Services
This segment encompasses the core fees charged for custody (assets under custody), wallet solutions, and professional services. It is the steady, recurring revenue engine of the business.
- Operational Scope: Includes fees for cold storage custody, wallet-as-a-service (WaaS) APIs, and onboarding fees for institutional clients.
- 2024 Revenue: $77.4 million
- 2025 Estimated Revenue: $114.6 million – $120.7 million
- Growth Trend: A projected increase of roughly $40.2 million.
- Performance Driver: Growth is driven by an increase in the number of institutional clients, expansion of professional services projects, and higher lending activity managed through the platform.
3. Stablecoin-as-a-Service
A newly launched segment in 2025, this business line allows BitGo to provide infrastructure for stablecoin issuers. BitGo manages the reserve assets backing the stablecoins.
- Operational Scope: BitGo earns interest on the fiat reserve assets held to back stablecoins and recognizes this as gross revenue. Simultaneously, they pay “stablecoin sponsor fees” to the issuers, which offsets a large portion of this revenue.
- 2024 Revenue: $0 (Service not active)
- 2025 Estimated Revenue: $63.4 million – $66.7 million
- Offsetting Expense (Sponsor Fees): $60.8 million – $64.0 million
- Net Economic Impact: While the top-line revenue contribution is significant (~$65 million), the net profit contribution is smaller due to the pass-through nature of the sponsor fees.
4. Digital Asset Sales / Principal Trading
While not broken out as a separate “service” line in terms of net fees in the provided text, the sheer volume of Total Expenses ($3.08 billion in 2024 and ~$16 billion in 2025) indicates that BitGo engages in principal trading or settlement activities where the gross value of assets sold is recognized.
- Operational Scope: Facilitating liquidity and settlement often requires buying and selling assets as a principal.
- Financial Impact: This segment drives the massive top-line revenue and expense figures but operates on thin margins.
History and Evolution
Founding and Early Years (2013–2017)
BitGo was founded in 2013 by Michael Belshe. The company pioneered the multi-signature (multi-sig) wallet, a technological breakthrough that required multiple private keys to authorize a transaction. This innovation significantly reduced the risk of theft and became the industry standard for institutional security.
Expansion into Regulated Custody (2018–2020)
Recognizing that institutional investors required more than just software, BitGo moved to become a regulated fiduciary.
- 2018: BitGo launched BitGo Trust Company, the first qualified custodian purpose-built for digital assets, regulated by the South Dakota Division of Banking.
- Growth: This move allowed BitGo to serve Registered Investment Advisors (RIAs) and other fiduciaries who are legally required to hold client assets with a “qualified custodian.”
Institutional Maturity and Banking Charter (2021–Present)
BitGo continued to expand its regulatory footprint and service offerings.
- New York Trust: BitGo secured a charter from the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) to operate BitGo New York Trust Company, LLC.
- Go Network: To solve the problem of counterparty risk in trading, BitGo launched the Go Network, enabling off-exchange settlement.
- 2025-2026 IPO: On January 12, 2026, BitGo Holdings, Inc. filed Amendment No. 4 to its Form S-1, preparing for an initial public offering on the NYSE. The company priced its offering to list under the symbol BTGO, solidifying its status as a mature, public financial institution.
Products and Services
1. Qualified Custody
BitGo’s flagship offering. It provides “cold storage” (offline) for digital assets.
- Profile: Assets are held in segregated accounts within bankruptcy-remote trust companies. This service is critical for clients who need to meet regulatory standards like the SEC’s Custody Rule.
- Revenue Classification: Falls under “Subscription and Services.”
2. Wallets (Hot and Warm)
- Profile: BitGo provides multi-signature wallet infrastructure that allows clients (such as exchanges) to manage their own treasury and customer withdrawals.
- Key Feature: Programmable policies (e.g., spending limits, whitelists) that allow organizations to control how funds move.
- Revenue: Subscription-based fees.
3. Staking
- Profile: A turnkey solution for earning rewards on Proof-of-Stake assets. BitGo handles the technical complexity of running validator nodes.
- Revenue Contribution: The single largest contributor to service revenue in 2024 ($419.3 million).
4. Go Network (Off-Exchange Settlement)
- Profile: A settlement network that allows BitGo clients to trade assets held in cold custody without pre-funding exchanges. This drastically reduces the risk of losing funds if an exchange fails (a direct response to events like the FTX collapse).
- Strategic Value: Increases the “stickiness” of the custody product by adding utility to static assets.
5. Stablecoin-as-a-Service
- Profile: A white-label solution for clients wishing to issue their own stablecoins. BitGo handles the custody of the fiat reserves and the minting/burning of the digital tokens.
- 2025 Est. Revenue: ~$65.1 million (midpoint).
Brand Portfolio
BitGo operates as a monolithic brand but utilizes specific sub-brands for legal and regulatory distinction:
- BitGo: The parent brand covering technology and software services.
- BitGo Trust: The brand used for fiduciary and custody services, implying a higher level of regulatory oversight.
- Go Network: The sub-brand for the settlement and liquidity network.
- WBTC (Wrapped Bitcoin): While not wholly owned, BitGo is the custodian and a primary merchant for WBTC, a critical DeFi asset that brings Bitcoin liquidity to the Ethereum network.
Geographical Presence
BitGo is a global entity with a physical footprint designed to support 24/7 financial markets.
United States (Primary Market)
- Sioux Falls, South Dakota: Headquarters and home of BitGo Bank & Trust, N.A. This location is strategic due to South Dakota’s favorable trust laws.
- New York, NY: Office for BitGo New York Trust Company, LLC, serving the highly regulated NY market.
- San Francisco/Palo Alto: Historical hub for technology and engineering talent.
International
- Singapore: BitGo Singapore Pte. Ltd. serves as the APAC hub. The entity holds a Major Payment Institution license, allowing it to offer regulated digital payment token services in the region.
- Germany: (Note: BitGo has historically operated a German entity, BitGo Deutschland GmbH, providing custody services in the EU under BaFin supervision, though specific revenue splits are not detailed in the snippet).
Financial Performance Analysis
Note: The financial data below reflects the scale of BitGo’s operations, highlighting the massive throughput of assets and the service fees derived from them.
Profit and Loss Analysis (2024 vs. 2025 Estimates)
| Metric | Year Ended Dec 31, 2024 ($ Millions) | Year Ended Dec 31, 2025 (Est. Range) ($ Millions) | YoY Change (Midpoint) |
| Staking Fees | $419.3 | $328.7 – $346.0 | $(82.0) |
| Subscription & Services | $77.4 | $114.6 – $120.7 | +$40.2 |
| Stablecoin-as-a-Service | $0.0 | $63.4 – $66.7 | +$65.1 |
| Interest Income | $0.9 | $1.4 – $1.5 | +$0.5 |
| Total Expenses | $3,088.0 | $16,019.2 – $16,094.2 | +$12,968.7 |
Analysis:
- Revenue Volatility: Staking revenue is projected to drop in 2025, likely due to market conditions (crypto asset prices or yields) or increased competition compressing fees.
- Expense Explosion: The jump in expenses to over $16 billion in 2025 is attributed to “digital assets sales costs.” This confirms that BitGo is engaging in high-volume principal trading or settlement activities where the cost of the asset sold is recorded as an expense, and the sale price is recorded as revenue (gross reporting).
- Core Growth: The “Subscription and Services” line, which represents the stable SaaS and custody business, shows healthy growth (~52% increase), indicating strong client retention and onboarding.
Board of Directors and Leadership Team
BitGo’s leadership combines deep cryptographic expertise with traditional financial regulation experience.
Executive Officers
- Michael A. Belshe:Chief Executive Officer, Chief Technology Officer, President, and Director.
- Profile: Co-founder of BitGo. Creator of the HTTP/2.0 protocol and former engineer at Google and Netscape. He is the architect behind the multi-signature wallet technology. As of the offering, he controls ~55.5% of the voting power.
- Chuck Thompson:Chief Legal Officer.
- Profile: Oversees the complex regulatory framework across state, federal, and international jurisdictions.
Board of Directors
- Michael A. Belshe: Chairman.
- (Note: The snippet mentions exemptions for “Controlled Companies” regarding independent directors. Specific names of other directors were not listed in the provided text snippet, but the filing indicates the board does not need to be majority independent.)
Subsidiaries
BitGo Holdings, Inc. acts as the parent for a network of operating subsidiaries:
- BitGo Bank & Trust, National Association
- Role: Federally chartered trust bank.
- Importance: Allows BitGo to operate across state lines with preemption privileges and offers the highest standard of custodial regulation.
- BitGo New York Trust Company, LLC
- Role: Limited purpose trust company regulated by NYDFS.
- Importance: Essential for operating in New York, the financial capital of the US.
- BitGo, Inc.
- Role: The primary operating entity for technology and non-regulated software services.
- BitGo Singapore Pte. Ltd.
- Role: Singaporean operating entity for APAC expansion.
Segment-Wise Performance
- Staking Segment:
- Performance: High revenue generation ($419M in 2024), but volatile. The 2025 forecast suggests a contraction, highlighting the risk of dependency on asset prices and network yields.
- Subscription Segment:
- Performance: The “steady ship” of the company. Growing from $77.4M to a projected ~$117M. This segment proves the demand for secure institutional custody is decoupling from the volatility of trading fees.
- Stablecoin Segment:
- Performance: Zero to ~$65M in one year. This demonstrates BitGo’s ability to rapidly deploy and monetize new infrastructure products, though margins are lower due to sponsor fee payouts.
Founders
Michael A. Belshe
Michael Belshe is the driving force behind BitGo. A veteran of Silicon Valley, he was one of the first engineers at Chrome and is credited as a co-inventor of the SPDY protocol, which evolved into HTTP/2.0. His background is deeply rooted in security and distributed systems. Unlike many crypto founders who came from trading or marketing, Belshe’s engineering-first approach established BitGo’s reputation for having “unhackable” wallets.
In the provided filing, Belshe is identified as the controlling stockholder, holding Class B common stock that carries 15 votes per share, ensuring he retains decision-making authority over the company’s strategic direction.
Shareholding Pattern
The company employs a dual-class share structure designed to concentrate control.
- Class A Common Stock:
- Votes: 1 vote per share.
- Holders: Public investors (IPO participants).
- Class B Common Stock:
- Votes: 15 votes per share.
- Holders: Michael A. Belshe and potentially other early insiders.
- Convertibility: Class B shares can be converted to Class A at any time.
- Promoter Holding (Michael Belshe):
- Post-offering, Belshe will hold 8,855,382 shares of Class B common stock.
- Voting Power: Approximately 55.5% (potentially increasing to 60.6% upon exercise of equity awards).
- Economic Interest: Approximately 7.7%.
- Implication: Belshe has absolute control over the election of directors and major corporate transactions.
Future Strategy
BitGo’s strategy focuses on deepening its integration into the global financial system.
- Regulatory Moat: By securing charters like the National Trust Bank charter, BitGo intends to be the default partner for traditional banks and asset managers entering the space.
- Diversification of Revenue: The launch of “Stablecoin-as-a-Service” and the expansion of the “Go Network” indicate a move away from pure storage fees toward transaction and participation-based revenue.
- International Expansion: The establishment of entities in Singapore and Europe signals a commitment to serving a global institutional client base, ensuring compliance with local regimes like MiCA (EU) and MAS (Singapore).
Key Strengths
- Regulatory Status: BitGo is one of the few crypto-native companies with trust charters in South Dakota, New York, and a Federal National Trust charter. This is a high barrier to entry for competitors.
- Security Track Record: The company’s multi-signature technology is industry-standard.
- Institutional Focus: Unlike Coinbase or Binance, BitGo does not compete with its clients (exchanges) for retail flow, positioning it as a neutral infrastructure provider.
- Revenue Diversity: A mix of recurring subscription revenue (custody) and volume-based revenue (staking/trading).
Key Challenges and Risks
BitGo’s S-1/A filing discloses several critical risks:
- Dual-Class Structure: The concentration of voting power in Michael Belshe’s hands limits the ability of public shareholders to influence corporate governance.
- Controlled Company Exemptions: As a “controlled company,” BitGo is not required to have a majority independent board or independent compensation/nominating committees, potentially reducing oversight.
- Staking Risks: Services involving staking are subject to “slashing” risks (penalties for technical failures) and regulatory uncertainty regarding whether staking constitutes a securities offering.
- Market Volatility: A significant portion of revenue (staking fees) is directly correlated to the market price of digital assets. A “crypto winter” could severely impact top-line revenue.
- Regulatory Uncertainty: The legal classification of digital assets and the definition of “Qualified Custodian” by the SEC remain in flux. Adverse rulings could impact BitGo’s core business model.
- Counterparty Risk in OES: The Off-Exchange Settlement (OES) service exposes BitGo to risks related to trade data errors, reconciliation failures, and counterparty defaults.
Conclusion and Strategic Outlook
BitGo Holdings, Inc. represents the maturation of the cryptocurrency industry. By wrapping digital ownership in the familiar protections of a regulated trust bank, BitGo bridges the gap between the chaotic innovation of blockchain and the stability of Wall Street. Its financial performance demonstrates a company capable of generating massive revenue streams, albeit with significant expense offsets from principal activities.
As BitGo enters the public markets, its success will depend on its ability to leverage its regulatory “moat” to capture institutional flows while managing the inherent volatility of the asset class it serves. With Michael Belshe firmly at the helm, the company is poised to continue its aggressive expansion into staking, settlement, and stablecoin infrastructure.
Official Site: https://www.bitgo.com
FAQ Section
- What is BitGo Holdings, Inc.?BitGo is a digital asset trust and security company that provides regulated custody, borrowing and lending, and infrastructure for institutional investors.
- Is BitGo a public company?Yes, BitGo filed to go public on the NYSE under the ticker symbol BTGO.
- What is BitGo’s revenue?For the year ended 2024, BitGo reported staking fees of $419.3 million and subscription revenue of $77.4 million. Total expenses were $3.08 billion.
- Who owns BitGo?BitGo has a dual-class share structure. Founder and CEO Michael Belshe controls approximately 55.5% of the voting power through Class B shares.
- What does BitGo do?BitGo offers cold storage custody, hot wallets, staking, trading, and settlement services (Go Network) for cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum.
- Is BitGo regulated?Yes, BitGo operates regulated trust companies in South Dakota and New York, and a federally chartered National Trust Bank.
- What is the “Go Network”?The Go Network is BitGo’s off-exchange settlement service that allows clients to trade digital assets while keeping them in regulated custody.
Source: Content on FirmsWorld.com is based on publicly available corporate filings, regulatory disclosures, annual reports, SEC 10-K filings, investor relations materials, and, where applicable, direct communications with the company.
