Bulk purchase of BTC for small Bitcoin holders

The collapse of the FTX cryptocurrency exchange seems to have brought Bitcoin back into the investor spotlight. The phenomenon emerged very quickly after the rebel player’s fall and has only been confirmed since then. And, according to blockchain analytics site Glassnodewould be mainly about small holders of the first cryptocurrency who made a massive purchase of BTC.

Massive purchase of BTC for “shrimps and crabs.”

2022 ends in twilight colors for the cryptocurrency sector, which will have experienced two particularly bloody episodes. (Terra Luna/UST in May and FTX in November) that shook it to its foundations. But not in its foundations, unless you believe the mainstream media that confuse everything out of laziness or sensationalism, because this. “annus horribilis The “annus horribilis”, as the late Elizabeth II would have said, may have finally brought bitcoin back into the game. A return to its origins that suggests distinguishing bitcoin from cryptocurrencies and fully embracing it as a decentralized asset, moving away from intermediaries, such as exchanges cryptocurrency exchanges that are neither more nor less than web banks2.

In fact, following the two trends observed in the last few weeks, not only Bitcoin is abandoning exchange platforms en masse to take refuge in Ledger-type self-management solutions, but also their small holders are taking advantage of this to acquire more.

Thus, according to the data of the site Glassnode, the “shrimp” category, which refers to investors who own less than 1 bitcoin, have added 96,200 BTC to their holdings since the FTX fiasco.. This is an “unprecedented increase” in their balance, although it caps a year of relentless accumulation. In total, this group of investors now owns more than 1.21 million BTC, or about 6.3% of the outstanding supply..

The above division, the “crabs” according to the bestiary defined by. Glassnodehave adopted similar behavior. These investors, who own between 1 and 10 BTC, accumulated them “aggressively” in the last 30 days in order to a total of 191,600 BTCThis figure is well above the all-time accumulation high of July 2022 at 126,000 BTC.

Whales adopt a different posture

Large carriers (over 1000 BTC) behave differently. In fact, this category, which is particularly watched by ecosystem players for its influence on market movements, is This category, especially watched by ecosystem players for its influence on market movements, is the one that has transferred the most bitcoin assets to the exchanges in the last month. However, taking into account the amount of their acquisitions, 6.3 million BTCThe 6500 BTC shipped does not represent a really significant portion. In fact, no hasty conclusions should be drawn from this small reduction.

The only thing to remember is that the FTX bankruptcy did not discourage bitcoin investors. In fact, its price has not visited the dreaded major bottoms, consistently hovering around the $16,000 mark. Nevertheless, this apparent placidity does not ward off the specter of a more brutal decline.It is likely that the FTX cataclysm has not yet produced its full consequences.