Bitcoin Rally Driven by Both Whales and Hot Money
The August Bitcoin rally saw large wallets buying up the cryptocurrency, but recent on-chain analysis suggests that 'hot money' is also playing a role in driving prices higher.
According to CryptoQuant data through August 30, the rally from $63,000 to $78,000 saw a sharp divide between large and small holders. Wallets holding 100 BTC or more added roughly 60,000 BTC during this time, while wallets holding 1 to 100 BTC sold about 33,000 BTC and those holding less than 1 BTC offloaded around 14,000 BTC.
The large-wallet buying accelerated as Bitcoin broke higher rather than being concentrated around the lows. This accumulation indicates that August's move was not simply a leverage-driven chase.
CryptoQuant notes that if large wallets return their 60,000 BTC accumulation to the market while Bitcoin struggles below $80,000, the absorption thesis would weaken.