In the last 24 hours, Bitcoin and altcoins encountered significant volatility, resulting in a notable decline, with the overall crypto market capitalization dropping by approximately 8%, settling at $2.53 trillion.
This swift market fluctuation may have taken many retail traders by surprise. However, insights from on-chain data reveal that certain large-scale investors, colloquially known as crypto whales, foresaw the downturn and offloaded a substantial portion of their holdings.
Crypto Whales Offload Holdings
On-chain analysts reported that several institutional investors strategically sold portions of their holdings during the market downturn. Four crypto whales collectively offloaded 31,683 ETH, valued at approximately $106 million.
Among the identified crypto whales were notable entities such as Cumberland, an address linked to the bankrupt Alameda/FTX estate, and two undisclosed altcoin wallets.
Cumberland, a prominent institutional crypto investment firm, deposited 17,206 ETH, amounting to $57.3 million, across various exchanges. On the other hand, two crypto whales, ‘0xC3f8’ and ‘0x1717’, moved 7,976 ETH worth $26.6 million and 4,000 ETH worth $13.32 million, respectively, to Binance and other exchanges.
Similarly, the FTX/Alameda estate transferred 2,500 ETH, valued at around $8.33 million. Interestingly, this is not the first time the failed exchange has effectively been able to time the market before drastic sell-offs.
“Since March 1, FTX and Alameda have deposited 15,850 ETH, worth $58 million into centralized exchanges at roughly $3,659, and dramatic price changes tended to follow afterward,” blockchain firm SpotOnChain said.
FTX Crypto Sales. Source: SpotOnChain
These significant trading activities exerted additional selling pressure on the market, contributing to the downturn. During the reporting period, BTC’s price experienced a sharp decline, plunging to as low as $65,100.
Although the leading cryptocurrency has slightly rebounded to around $68,000 at press time, its volatility led to a decrease in market capitalization to $1.3 trillion. According to data from CompaniesMarketCap, this positions Bitcoin behind Meta, the parent company of Facebook, in the global ranking of top assets.
Read more: Bitcoin Price Prediction 2024/2025/2030
Regardless, computer scientist Edward Snowden ridiculed the industry’s reaction to the recent dip, noting that the price of Bitcoin had remained relatively stable during the week.
“[I] see crypto people freaking out over prices [then I] open bitcoin chart [and see that the] price is the same as it was seven days ago,” Snowden remarked.
