diff --git a/subsys/bluetooth/shell/bt.c b/subsys/bluetooth/shell/bt.c
index 79647ead4ef..da8c5abec5a 100644
--- a/subsys/bluetooth/shell/bt.c
+++ b/subsys/bluetooth/shell/bt.c
@@ -694,8 +694,6 @@ static void connected(struct bt_conn *conn, uint8_t err)
 		}
 	}
 
-	default_conn = bt_conn_ref(conn);
-
 done:
 	/* clear connection reference for sec mode 3 pairing */
 	if (pairing_conn) {