A significant movement in the cryptocurrency market has been observed as a long-term Bitcoin holder, who previously liquidated $4 billion of their holdings for Ether less than a month ago, has begun selling again. This activity coincided with Bitcoin reaching a price of $116,000 for the first time in three weeks.
Reports from Lookonchain indicate that two Bitcoin wallets, associated with an address that has maintained its cryptocurrency for over eight years, deposited a total of 1,176 BTC, valued at over $136 million, into the trading platform Hyperliquid. This action marked the beginning of a selling spree.
After exchanging approximately 36,000 BTC for Ether in late August—amounting to over $4 billion—the wallet in question had taken a brief pause from trading. The recent selling activity reflects an accelerated pace following up on a two-week hiatus. Such movements by significant holders, often referred to as “whales,” can signal shifts in market sentiment and may influence price dynamics. Traders are expressing concerns that large-scale sales could lead to a downward pressure on Bitcoin’s value in the open market.
One month ago, it was reported that this identified Bitcoin whale had sold 35,991 BTC for Ether. While the ETH to BTC ratio has remained fairly stable since that transaction, current evaluations suggest that if the whale were to convert their Ether holdings back to Bitcoin now, they would incur a loss of nearly 460 BTC, equating to around $53 million.
The ETH to BTC ratio has lingered below 0.05 since July of the previous year, having peaked at 0.14 in mid-2017. Currently, it’s measured at 0.0401, reflecting a 6% increase over the past month.
Meanwhile, Bitcoin is facing a resistance testing phase at the $116,000 mark, which it reached last Friday for the first time since August 23. The cryptocurrency has demonstrated relatively stable trading in the 24 hours preceding this report, fluctuating between a high of $116,182 and a low of under $115,000 but struggling to maintain a position notably above $116,000. As of now, Bitcoin’s value reflects a 7% decline from its peak exceeding $124,000 recorded on August 14.
Additional whale behavior has been noted recently, as other notable wallets have also commenced selling activities. A long-dormant wallet, which had not engaged in transactions for nearly 13 years, transferred part of its nearly 445 Bitcoin reserve to the Kraken exchange just days ago. Similarly, another wallet, containing around 480 Bitcoin, executed transfers for the first time since 2012, seemingly aimed at repositioning funds to a new address.
As the market observes these large transactions, analyst sentiment leans toward caution, with speculation about a possible “big thrust” for Bitcoin poised to reach $150,000 amidst rising pressure on Ethereum.
