Crypto Whales Pile into Bitcoin and Ether as Market Approaches Bear Market Bottom
CryptoQuant's latest Smart Money report suggests that large cryptocurrency holders are accumulating Bitcoin ($BTC) and Ether ($ETH) as market valuations approach levels associated with a late-stage bear market.
Rising whale balances during price weakness can reduce available supply and concentrate ownership among larger holders, according to CryptoQuant. Since December 2025, Bitcoin whale holdings have risen to about 3.06 million $BTC from 2.87 million $BTC, accelerating after the price dropped below $60,000 in June.
Ethereum wallets holding between 10,000 and 100,000 $ETH collectively held a record 19.6 million $ETH, while those with more than 100,000 $ETH added roughly 1.8 million $ETH since mid-2025. In the $XRP market, average spot order sizes remained in CryptoQuant's 'big whale' category as the token traded between $1 and $1.20.
CryptoQuant points to realized price, an estimate of the market's average onchain cost basis, as evidence that the market may be approaching a bottom. At the time of writing, Bitcoin traded at $63,935, above its realized price of $52,900. Ether traded at $1,858, below its realized price of about $2,450.