Bitcoin exchange inflows drop to 10-year lows after $74K all-time highs

Bitcoin ( BTC ) exchange inflows are plumbing lows not seen in the nearly a decade, the latest data shows.

Figures from on-chain analytics platform CryptoQuant show daily BTC inflows declining significantly since Bitcoin’s $73,800 all-time highs.

Bitcoin exchange inflows channel 2014 levels

Bitcoin traders are in no mood to keep coins available for quick sale on exchanges.

According to CryptoQuant, April and May 2024 have seen some of the lowest daily inflows to major exchange accounts in the past ten years.

On April 20, when BTC/USD was around the same levels as at the time of writing, just 8,400 BTC flowed into exchanges.

The last time that such small flows were observed was when Bitcoin traded at less than $1,000 per coin.

CryptoQuant tracks a large number of both spot and derivative exchanges to compile the data.

The numbers reflect a significant shift in hodler sentiment this year, as Bitcoin investment enters a new era of institutional involvement.

As Cointelegraph continues to report , appetite for increasing exposure to BTC has persisted despite short-term BTC price volatility — including last week’s trip to $56,500.

Analyst cautions on Bitcoin "whale watching"

Market observers continue to flag positive events tied to Bitcoin whale cohorts.

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“Whales in the range of 1k to 10k, which typically provide significant downward volatility to the market, have not been consistently participating in this current uptrend cycle,” CryptoQuant contributor Mignolet wrote in one of its Quicktake research updates this week.

Mignolet referred to whale entities holding between 1,000 BTC and 10,000 BTC. An accompanying chart showed spent output age bands of on-chain transactions.

The post added that whales may “not be willing to sell yet as the cycle has not ended.”

“There might be demand outside of exchanges, particularly in the OTC (over-the-counter) market, capable of absorbing large selling volumes even without deposits into exchanges post-ETF approval,” Mignolet wrote.

Commenting on the current market landscape, however, Checkmate, the pseudonymous lead on-chain analyst at data firm Glassnode, said that the new spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds were likely shaping the numbers.

“Data around these entities is notoriously noisy, and I can almost guarantee that the big 'whale' wallets you're watching are ETFs, and exchanges,” he told followers in part of a post on X (formerly Twitter).

“There will be some actual whales yes...but as both buyers and sellers. Not once have I seen true alpha extracted from whale watching.”