Bitcoin’s price has been rising at a rapid pace so far this year, and data seems to show whales took advantage of a recent 15% drop to accumulate more bitcoin.
On a Reddit thread on the r/Bitcoin subreddit, a user pointed out that Coinbase data showed that out of its users with the largest bitcoin balances (the top 10%) around 77% were buying the flagship cryptocurrency during the dip, while around 23% were selling.
Moreover, Twitter bot Whale Alert, which tracks large transactions on the blockchains of most top cryptocurrencies, picked up on eight transactions of 3,000 BTC ($35.1 million) coming out of popular cryptocurrency exchange OKEx. These, according to some, were whales withdrawing funds.
🚨 🚨 🚨 3,000 #BTC (35,196,313 USD) transferred from #OKEx to unknown wallet
— Whale Alert (@whale_alert) July 12, 2019
Bitcoin’s 15% drop occurred earlier this month. The cryptocurrency has been recovering from a $3,200 low since December of last year, and hit a yearly high of $13,000 in late June. After a short correction that saw it hit $12,000, the cryptocurrency dropped to $9,800 before quickly recovering.
What caused the drop is unclear. This week U.S. President Donald Trump weighed in on bitcoin and cryptocurrencies, and revealed he isn’t a fan of cryptos as he doesn’t see them as money because of their volatile nature. He added they’re “based on thin air.”
Referring to the U.S. dollar, Trump added there’s “one real currency in the USA, and it is stronger than ever, both dependable and reliable.” The cryptocurrency community thanked him for tweeting out about bitcoin, as he put the cryptocurrency in front of his over 62 million followers.
The chairman of the Federal Reserve System, Jeremy Powell, has also recently addressed cryptocurrencies, calling bitcoin a “speculative store of value like gold.” Both also showed concern regarding Facebook’s cryptocurrency Libra.
Prominent cryptocurrency analysts, including Fundstrat’s Tom Lee, saw these approaches as bullish for bitcoin and the cryptocurrency space in general.
First reaction-disappointed White House weighing in on Bitcoin without much in the way of two-way hearings.
On other hand, should any other policy stance be expected given the importance of USD dominance?
Probably exactly the reason and rationale for early adopters of $BTC
— Thomas Lee (@fundstrat) July 12, 2019
Lee, as covered, has predicted bitcoin’s price could reach $40,000 by October of this year after it exceeding the $10,000 mark. At press time, one bitcoin is trading at about $11,550.
