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Rising whale activity hints at strategic positioning during bitcoin’s downturn.
Nov 17, 2025, 3:53 p.m.
Over the past week the number of unique entities holding at least 1,000 BTC has climbed to 1,436 even as bitcoin has tumbled and held firmly below $100,000.
This marks a sharp reversal from the broader 2025 trend where "OGs" and long term participants have been steady net sellers.
For context, this cohort peaked above 1,500 entities in November 2024 in the excitement and bull move following Donald Trump's election victory. It declined to about 1,300 in October.
The last time a price rally was seen with a rise in large holder entities was in January 2024, ahead of the U.S. ETF launch, when the number rose from 1,380 to 1,512 entities. Bitcoin ultimately topped out around $70,000 a couple of months later.
Further evidence supports this from the Accumulation Trend Score by Glassnode which breaks down wallet cohort behavior.
This metric measures the relative strength of coin acquisition across different balance tiers based on entity size and the volume of coins accumulated over the past fifteen days. A reading near one indicates accumulation, while a reading near zero indicates distribution. Entities such as exchanges and miners are excluded.
For the first time since August, whales holding more than 10,000 BTC are no longer heavy sellers, with their score now around 0.5. Entities holding between 1,000 and 10,000 BTC are now showing modest accumulation.
The strongest accumulation comes from holders with 100 to 1,000 BTC and from wallets holding less than 1 BTC. The data suggests growing conviction from both large and small entities that bitcoin is undervalued at current levels.
Accumulation Trend Score by Cohort (Glassnode)
AI Disclaimer: Parts of this article were generated with the assistance from AI tools and reviewed by our editorial team to ensure accuracy and adherence to our standards. For more information, see CoinDesk's full AI Policy.
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