Number of Bitcoin Whales Surges to Highest Level Since January 2021
The number of large Bitcoin holders, often referred to as whales, has reached its highest point since January 2021, providing further evidence for a potential rally to new record highs. Recent data from Glassnode and Bitwise’s Director and Head of Research – Europe, André Dragosch, indicates that there are now 1,678 network entities that hold at least 1,000 BTC. This increase in whale accumulation, combined with the growing interest in alternative investment vehicles like U.S.-listed spot ETFs, suggests a growing confidence in Bitcoin’s price trajectory.
Meanwhile, retail investor accumulation has slowed, with CryptoQuant reporting that retail holdings have only increased by 1,000 Bitcoin in the last month. This sluggish pace is in contrast to the holdings of larger investors, who have seen their Bitcoin holdings grow by 173,000 Bitcoin since the beginning of the year. Despite this, some analysts remain optimistic about Bitcoin’s future performance, with options trading on Deribit pointing to $80,000 and $100,000 as levels to watch for the remainder of the year. At the time of writing, Bitcoin is trading just above $67,000, inching closer to its all-time high of $73,800. The recent pause in price momentum is attributed to the rise in the dollar index and Treasury yields, but many experts believe that these factors will not suppress risk assets for an extended period.