CryptoQuant CEO Ki Yong Ju notes that whales carefully prepared for the growth of the crypto market at the end of 2023.
He shared his observations about what steps large investors take in a thread shared on X.
According to Ju, whales recently opened the bulk of long positions when Bitcoin (BTC) reached $29,000. The accumulation phase, according to his observations, started in early Aug. 2023.
At the same time, many whales began to enter the market when BTC reached a cyclical low against the backdrop of the collapse of the FTX crypto exchange in Nov. 2022. This, in his opinion, is indicated by the increase in cryptocurrency transfers to derivative trading platforms during the indicated period.
A surge in whale activity in the United States occurred in Oct. 2023. This is indicated by an increase in markups on the Coinbase premium index and assets on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME).
However, retail investors have not yet entered the market. Yet in such conditions, Ju notes, the supply of BTC may not keep up with the demand from large investors, which means that whales are unlikely to get rid of their coin reserves.
On Dec. 4-5, the price of BTC reached a yearly high. The largest cryptocurrency was trading above $42,000 and at its highest level since April 2022.
Over the past month, Bitcoin has risen in price by almost 19%, and since the beginning of 2023 its price has increased 2.3 fold, thanks to expectations that the U.S. will soon approve exchange-traded funds (ETFs) for direct investment in cryptocurrencies by large instructional investors.