As previously reported, bitcoin the holders have held constantly in their currencies in recent months. bitcoin whales, in particular, appear to be doubling down despite the current uncertainty in bitcoin‘s future projection. Long-term holders add a average of 50,000 btc to their wallets every month, as indicated by the HODLer Net Position Change indicator provided by Glassnode.
On the other hand, ethereal whales, the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency, appears to be on a different trajectory. On-chain data has shown that while bitcoin whales hoard their coins, ethereum whales appear to be dumping their holdings in recent years.
bitcoin whales buy more, ethereum whales sell
bitcoin whales, that is, the largest holders with 1,000 btc or more, have been steadily accumulating more btc since 2018, according to data from on-chain analysis companies. However, there have been massive sell-offs, either through prolonged bear markets or during profit-taking after a strong uptrend.
A Cryptoslate research analyst named James Straten aware on social media that ethereum whales with over 1,000 eth have been selling since the same period. While sharing a Glassnode chart, he shared a correlation between blockchain whales.
On-chain data shows that eth whales have dumped 20 million eth since 2022, with 12 million eth sold only this year.
Possible explanation for contrasting whale activity
The story these on-chain metrics tell provides insight into the prevailing mood among large cryptocurrency holders across different blockchains.
Although the amount of eth held by the whales could indicate that they have sold or moved your funds Unlike other cryptocurrencies, a better possibility is that these whales transferred their eth to ethereum smart contracts. From ethereum version 2.0 Starting its journey in December 2020, the number of tokens on the staking protocol has grown significantly.
eth 2.0 requires validators to stake 32 eth in their deposit contract to validate transactions on the ethereum blockchain. At the moment, the contract now has 31.2 million eth worth $48.6 billion locked. This seems consistent with on-chain data, which shows that the percentage of supply tied in smart contracts exceeded the supply at addresses holding more than 1,000 eth at the end of 2020.
André Dragosch, cryptocurrency research analyst shared this correlation on the social media platform
With a 17.8% dominance over the entire cryptocurrency market, the ethereum blockchain continues to solidify its position as the undisputed leader of smart contracts. Unlike bitcoin whales, eth bull whales are not just HODLing but employing techniques to maximize your crypto profits.
At the time of writing, eth is trading at $1,557. However, a recently failed bullish pattern formation could cause the price of eth to fall below $1,000.
Cover image from Unsplash, chart from Tradingview
