Prominent Bitcoin ($BTC) investors have engaged in substantial accumulation of the flagship cryptocurrency throughout this year, amassing a total of 13.03 million coins in their holdings, marking the highest level in 2023.
According to insights provided by on-chain analytics firm “Bitcoin’s Sharks and Whales,” which categorizes wallets holding between 10 and 10,000 BTC, these entities now exert control over more than 66% of the circulating supply of Bitcoin.
Furthermore, the firm’s data reveals a noteworthy uptick in accumulation among wallets holding 100,000 to 10 million USDT tokens, amassing a combined value of $15 billion in the stablecoin—a six-week high.
This accumulation trend unfolds amid a backdrop where major financial institutions, collectively managing an astonishing $27 trillion in assets, are actively venturing into the realm of Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies. This movement follows the race to introduce the first Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) in the United States.
As emphasized by CoinShares Chief Strategy Officer, Meltem Demirors, a coalition of financial giants, including BlackRock, Fidelity, JP Morgan, Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, BNY Mellon, Invesco, and Bank of America, is diligently pursuing avenues to facilitate access to Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.
Data from Santiment suggests that the accumulation surge observed among Bitcoin and Tether “sharks” and “whales” coincided with BlackRock’s pioneering application for a spot Bitcoin ETF with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on June 16. This move set off a chain reaction as other institutions swiftly followed suit with similar applications.
This flurry of activity reverberated through the market, propelling the price of Bitcoin to its highest point of the year, exceeding the $31,000 mark. Subsequently, the cryptocurrency has experienced a correction and currently trades at approximately $26,800.
