- An OG Bitcoin whale transferred 750 BTC, valued at around US$83 million, to Binance on August 27 sparking speculation they’re looking to take profits.
- The whale first acquired their bag of 5,000 BTC in 2013 at an average price of US$332. They’re now believed to have sold 1,750 BTC for a profit of around US$550 million.
- A recent surge in activity of long-term Bitcoin whales has been seen, many of whom acquired their BTC for under US$10, as they take the opportunity to lock in huge profits.
A Bitcoin whale transferred 750 BTC, valued at the time at around US$84 million (AU$128.9m), to Binance on August 27, fuelling speculation that the owner may have sold to lock in millions in profits.
On-chain data shows that the 750 BTC were part of 5,000 Bitcoin first acquired way back in late 2013 for around US$332 (AU$509) per BTC, just under US$1.66 million (AU$2.5m) in total.
The owner of the address had held all 5.000 BTC for over 11 years, laying dormant until last December when they started to become active after the price of Bitcoin crossed the US$90,000 (AU$138k) mark.
According to the X account Lookonchain, the owner has now sold a total of 1,750 BTC at an average price per BTC of US$108,160 (AU$166k) with a total value of US$189.3 million (AU$290m). These figures include the 750 BTC just transferred to Binance.
Lookonchain added that the owner is now in profit to the tune of US$550 million (AU$844m), a 331x return on their initial investment.
The owner still holds a further 3,250 BTC, with 750 BTC remaining in the wallet that made the transfer to Binance and another 2,500 sitting in a related wallet.
Related: Dormant Bitcoin Whale Moves $349M After a Decade of Silence
OG Bitcoin Whales Start to Get Active
The last few months have seen a wave of activity from long-dormant Bitcoin whale accounts.
On July 24, a long-term Bitcoin HODLer who first acquired their stash in 2011 at an average price of around US$0.37 (AU$0.57) moved their entire holdings of 3,962 BTC, now valued at over US$460 million (AU$706m) to a new address, according to data from bitinfocharts. Before this transfer it had been assumed the keys to this account had been lost.
Earlier in July another whale shifted 10,603 BTC, now valued at over US$1 billion (AU$1.5b) after several years of inactivity, while an OG whale whose wallet had been inactive for over 14 years sent a whopping 40,191 BTC (valued at over US$4 billion [AU$6.1b]) to Galaxy Digital on July 17.
Crypto analyst Willy Woo commented that the wave of activity from long-term Bitcoin whales, many of whom are taking profits, was harming Bitcoin’s momentum and distorting the market.
BTC supply is concentrated around OG whales who peaked their holdings in 2011. They bought their BTC at $10 or lower. This differential in cost basis, the supply they hold and their rate of selling has profound impacts on how much new capital that needs to come in to lift price.
Related: Willy Woo: Bitcoin OG Whales Slowing Price Growth With Heavy Selling
Woo added that these sales by early whales need to be cleared out before Bitcoin can continue its upward momentum: “You can look at this as BTC going through growing pains until these 10,000x gain investors are absorbed.”
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