Coinspeaker
Number of Bitcoin Whales with Over 100 BTC in Holdings Jumps to 17-Month High
Whales were busy gobbling massive Bitcoin (BTC) holdings amid slow price growth and market fluctuations. To a large extent, small traders are overwhelmed by the market pressure and turn to selling their holdings. However, on-chain data shows that this group of Bitcoin holders has been increasingly active in the last few weeks.
Bitcoin Whale Wallets Hits Stunning Threshold
In context with Bitcoin whale activity, the number of BTC wallets holding 100 coins or more has just reached a 17-month high. This reflects the surge in whale wallets holding Bitcoin over the past month. On August 31, blockchain analytics platform Santiment shared an X post showing over 283 wallets that crossed the 100 Bitcoin mark that month.
In total, about 16,120 addresses have surpassed the 100 Bitcoin threshold.
🐳 As crypto prices have let retail traders down, Bitcoin whales are growing in number. A net gain of +283 wallets holding at least 100 BTC has emerged in just 1 month. The now 16,120 such wallets on the network has broken a 17-month high. pic.twitter.com/DcAU0W01Pk
— Santiment (@santimentfeed) August 31, 2024
Blockstream CEO Adam Back also acknowledged the surge in whale activity. He pointed out that it happened when Bitcoin price dipped from over $62,000 to around $58,000. The Hashcash inventor stated that whales have been on a buying spree since August 28. Back noted that whales buy 450 BTC units daily, every minute, all day.
Sharks, wallets with at least 10 Bitcoin, have also tolled the path of whales by increasing their BTC holdings, per Santiment’s data. Collectively, both Bitcoin whales and sharks have accumulated a total of 133,000 BTC coins, valued at more than $7.6 billion in the last 30 days. As of writing, the accumulation from these big HODLers has not impacted the price of BTC. Noteworthy, Bitcoin is currently trading at $57,694.11, down by 0.84% in the last 24 hours per CoinMarketCap data.
Smaller Bitcoin Traders Give Whales an Edge
As Santiment hinted, this increasing whale activity is closely linked to smaller traders ditching their holdings out of impatience and fear of the unknown. Such decisions are common, especially when the market turns bearish.
In an X post, crypto analyst Axel Adler Jr. confirmed that a price drop below their entry point generally forces smaller traders to sell their holdings. He claimed that the metric has not fallen below 17% in the current bull market. Rather, it is currently at -8%, but a further decline could double the number of traders willing to sell their holdings, Adler suggested.
For exactly one month, short-term holders (1 to 3 months) have been trading at a loss.
In the current bull market, the metric has not fallen below 17%, the current figure is -8%. If it continues to decline, the number of people willing to sell coins at a loss could double.
HODL pic.twitter.com/Z0PszaD3bL
— Axel 💎🙌 Adler Jr (@AxelAdlerJr) September 1, 2024
The outlook of Bitcoin has significantly impacted several entities. As of August 30, Coinspeaker reported that Bitcoin held on cryptocurrency exchanges has dropped to its lowest level this year. It is expected to set the stage for a significant price movement, a break past the $60,000 mark.
Bitcoin has generally performed well in 2024, and a few catalysts may help to strengthen the coin further.
Number of Bitcoin Whales with Over 100 BTC in Holdings Jumps to 17-Month High
