Bitcoin experienced fluctuations after dropping below $67,000 yesterday (24th). This occurred as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved the 19b-4 documents for the first Ethereum spot ETF. However, late last night, Bitcoin surged from $67,000 by over 3.3% to a high of $69,250. It was reported at $68,625 at the time of writing, marking a 1.4% increase in the past 24 hours.
Bitcoin Whales Purchase $1.34 Billion BTC
Analysts believe that last night's surge was primarily driven by Bitcoin whales' purchases. Cryptocurrency analyst Ali Martinez tweeted last night, pointing out that these Bitcoin whales seized the opportunity to buy BTC when it dropped below $67,000.
These large Bitcoin holders purchased over 20,000 BTC in the past 24 hours, valued at approximately $1.34 billion.
CryptoQuant: Resurgence in Bitcoin Whales' Buying
Blockchain analysis firm CryptoQuant also identified a resurgence in Bitcoin whales' purchasing power. According to Decrypt, on-chain data shows that since Bitcoin reached an all-time high of $73,000 in March, this is the first time Bitcoin whales have shown renewed interest in buying. CryptoQuant tweeted last night:
"Bitcoin whales' buying desire has returned."
They are now back with strong buying power, indicating that despite widespread fear, the current prices are seen as favorable for purchasing and hoarding.
CryptoQuant noted an increase in the 30-day percentage change in the holdings of whale addresses, and the total balance of BTC held by whales is also rising.
A "whale" refers to any Bitcoin address owner holding between 1,000 BTC and 10,000 BTC, excluding addresses controlled by mining companies and cryptocurrency exchanges.
Analyst: Whales' Bitcoin Investment Doubles, Bull Market Frenzy Still Far Off
CryptoQuant Head of Research Julio Moreno stated, "Generally, whales buy Bitcoin at a faster rate during bull markets and reduce their purchases when the market turns bearish."
For instance, in March this year, the BTC held by whales increased by over 9.8%. They continued to accumulate in April, but after May 1, the accumulation rate slowed to 4.2% as Bitcoin's price dropped more than 20% from its peak, falling below $57,000. However, by May 22, this indicator had recovered to 5.5%, indicating that whales' accumulation resumed after the market bottomed out.
Moreno noted that since the beginning of this year, the amount of Bitcoin investment by whales has more than doubled, increasing from $57 billion to $122 billion. (This value is based on observing the "realized market cap" of whale holders, which measures based on the purchase time of each Bitcoin rather than its current market value.)
Glassnode Chief Analyst James Check stated on Wednesday that the overall realized market cap of the Bitcoin network has reached a historical high of $578 billion.
This means that Bitcoin's fundamentals have never been stronger. In my view, we are still far from the true frenzy stage of a bull market.