The number of Bitcoin [BTC] whales, which are entities holding more than 1K coins, has surged in 2024, reaching levels reminiscent of early 2021 when the digital asset skyrocketed to its previous all-time high of $69K.
Recent data from Glassnode indicates that there were over 1660 whale entities as of October 23rd.
In response to this uptick in large BTC investors, Andre Dragosch, the head of research at Bitwise, pondered whether this surge could potentially foreshadow a new all-time high (ATH) for Bitcoin.
“The total number of #Bitcoin whales has just hit the highest level since January 2021! Are new ATHs on the horizon?”
To give some context, in 2020, the number of whales increased from 1650 to over 1760, preceding a rally in BTC price to a new ATH the following year. Whether a similar pattern will unfold in 2024 remains to be seen.
Speculation on Whales Holding 4 Million BTC
As per data from CryptoQuant, the total holdings of whales stood at 3.9 million BTC at the time of reporting.
This figure equates to a staggering $261 billion, which represents nearly 20% of the total BTC market cap. Since mid-2023, whale entities have accumulated approximately 670K BTC.
Nevertheless, not all groups of whales have been aggressively accumulating. Data from Santiment shows that entities with holdings ranging from 100K to 1 million BTC have been actively accumulating in 2024, whereas those with 1K to 10K BTC have reduced their exposure.
Overall, whales have added more BTC to their portfolios compared to retail investors, according to analysts at CryptoQuant.
“Since the commencement of 2024, the portfolios of larger investors (1-10K BTC holders) have been growing at a faster rate than those of retail investors annually. As of now, retail holdings have increased by 30K Bitcoin, in contrast to 173K Bitcoin held by other larger investors.”
Furthermore, Santiment data suggests that individuals holding less than 10 BTC have experienced sluggish growth in recent months. On the contrary, those with holdings between 100 and 1000 BTC have expanded their positions, increasing their market dominance from 19% to 20%.
Despite the relatively slow growth of the retail BTC stash, the overarching trend appears to favor a strategy of holding, as indicated by the rise in BTC accumulation balances.
Analysts view these trends as potentially positive drivers for Bitcoin’s prospects of making a new ATH attempt, but only time will unveil the outcome.