On-chain analytics firm Glassnode has highlighted a notable trend among smaller Bitcoin investor cohorts leaning towards distribution amidst a recent market rally. In a recent update, Glassnode discussed the Bitcoin Accumulation Trend Score, a key indicator that assesses whether Bitcoin investors are in an accumulation or distribution phase.
This metric is derived from two primary factors: the 30-day balance changes in investors’ wallets and the size of those wallets, with larger entities carrying more weight in the score. A value exceeding 0.5 indicates an accumulation phase, with scores nearing 1 reflecting strong buying behavior. Conversely, a score below 0.5 signals a dominance of distribution, with a score of zero denoting the most significant selling activity.
While the overall Accumulation Trend Score is insightful, Glassnode focused specifically on the Wallet Size variant, which illustrates the actions of various investor cohorts based on their Bitcoin holdings. Their shared chart reveals a shift in trends over the past few months.
In February, the score exhibited a blue hue across multiple groups, indicating a broad accumulation effort. However, by March, the trend shifted dramatically towards distribution, with holders across all ranges engaging in minimal to no accumulation. The smallest investor groups—those holding less than 1 Bitcoin and between 1 to 10 Bitcoins—emerged as significant distributors, particularly at the start of March when their scores approached zero.
This trend persisted even as Bitcoin surged towards $76,000, signifying that retail investors were selling off amid the price recovery. Despite some recent price retracement, behaviors from these smaller cohorts remained largely unchanged. However, the larger group holding between 1,000 to 10,000 Bitcoins saw a slight uptick in their trend score, indicating a small shift towards accumulation among whale investors.
Overall, the picture painted by the analytics firm suggests a prevailing atmosphere of distribution among Bitcoin holders. “Broad-based accumulation across wallet sizes remains absent, limiting the sustainability of upward moves,” they concluded.
As for Bitcoin’s price stance, it has struggled to regain momentum following its recent downturn, currently trading around $66,700.
