Bitcoin price fell after rising to $71,000 on ETF approval news last week. Shortly after the price surge, the major cryptocurrency saw a correction to $67,000 and appears to be back in the consolidation range.
Interestingly, Bitcoin whales seem to have awakened from their slumber, as they have loaded their bags with large amounts of Bitcoin in the past few days. This begs the question – could the appetite of returning whales push Bitcoin to a new record price?
Is a return to all-time highs imminent?
A pseudonymous analyst participated in CryptoQuant Quick post Bitcoin whales are showing increased buying appetite and are active in the market again. The relevant indicators here are the total holdings of whales and the moving average that tracks the percentage change in the balance for 30 days.
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Whales are entities (individuals or organizations) that own large amounts of cryptocurrency (usually at least 1,000 Bitcoin, in this case). Due to the size of their holdings, whales are often able to influence price movements and market dynamics through their activities.
In a Quicktake post, the on-chain analyst noted the recent increase in the monthly percentage change in whale address holdings and the steady rise in the total whale balance. The pseudonym said:
Whales' appetite for buying Bitcoin has returned strongly, after buying interest declined for two months since March.
From the above chart, it is observed that Bitcoin whales increased their holdings by more than 11% in March when Bitcoin price reached a new all-time high of $73,737. However, Bitcoin's accumulation rate stabilized in April, with the 30-day percentage change falling to around 3% by the end of the month.
Bitcoin accumulation appears to be on the rise in May, with the monthly percentage change back above 5% as of May 24th. A CryptoQuant analyst said in the post:
They (whales) are now returning with strong purchasing power again, an indication that current prices are suitable for purchase and accumulation despite widespread fear.
If whale accumulation of BTC returns to the March level, there is an increasing possibility that the price of Bitcoin will return to and possibly surpass its all-time high. This prediction is even more reasonable considering that the leading cryptocurrency made a new high the last time whales accumulated Bitcoin at this rate.
Bitcoin price at a glance
As of press time, Bitcoin's price is around $69,216, reflecting a 0.8% increase over the past 24 hours.
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Featured image from iStock, chart from TradingView