🐋 Whale Gobbles $81.9M in BTC While Bitcoin Plays Hot Potato at $60K

Bitcoin [BTC] traded near $60,352 on Tuesday after slipping 0.19% on the daily chart, with the price oscillating between $59,000 and $60,000 for a fifth consecutive day and breaching the $60,000 level intraday each session, according to on-chain and market data. CryptoQuant's Spot Average Order Size data shows large whale orders clustered repeatedly at the $59,000 and $60,000 levels over the past five days, while Exchange Netflow has remained negative for the past three days at approximately -125 BTC, a combination analysts interpret as large-holder accumulation on the spot market.

Lookonchain reported that a newly created wallet withdrew 1,350 BTC, valued at $81.87 million, from Binance, deploying capital during a period of price weakness. Glassnode data cited in a separate analysis confirms that whale net positions have remained stable within the accumulation zone since renewed buying resumed in late 2024, with the 30-day accumulation rate still positive, though moderating from prior surges. The divergence between continued large-holder buying and the second-largest weekly outflow from Bitcoin ETFs since spot products launched in January 2024 has positioned whales as structural buyers even as institutional products face sustained redemptions.

Selling pressure has nonetheless intensified. CoinDesk reported that Bitcoin's preferred stock STRC hit a record low near $71 last week, while common stock fell 25% over the week to its lowest level since February 2024, with the company stating it may sell more than $1 billion in bitcoin to shore up its finances. Alex Kuptsikevich, chief market analyst at FxPro, said in an email that the current range sits below rebound levels from February and earlier this month, as well as below the 50-day and 200-day moving averages, which are both sloping downward. "This is a rather dangerous consolidation for the bulls," Kuptsikevich said, adding that if the pattern breaks lower, the next meaningful step down is around $40,000.

CryptoQuant analyst Darkfost flagged signs that long-term holders are beginning to capitulate by selling at a loss. Active addresses and transaction activity have hovered near the low end of their recent ranges through the slide. Bitcoin's SMI MFT indicator remained negative, with the SMI at -43, a reading associated with extended bearish momentum. Pseudonymous analyst coverage notes that some on-chain metrics describe the exchange flow as inflationary, with new inflows exceeding withdrawals at a price near $59,500, even as ETF outflows continued to weigh on institutional demand.