Report: Large Bitcoin Investors Drive Market Shift as Demand Weakens
According to Cryptoquant’s analysis, significant investors have been steadily increasing their bitcoin ( BTC) holdings. Data reveals a 2% rise in bitcoin ownership by large holders as of Jan. 17—the most pronounced monthly increase since December 2024. This pattern indicates a recalibration of market behavior, potentially driven by political events, including President Trump’s inauguration.
The report highlights that large investors, who wield significant influence over bitcoin’s price and demand, have expanded their collective holdings from 16.2 million BTC in Nov. to 16.4 million BTC by January. “Meanwhile, small investors (violet line) reduced their holdings from 1.75 to 1.69 million bitcoin in the same period,” Cryptoquant remarked in its report.
Despite the renewed accumulation by major investors, the broader demand for bitcoin has not regained strength. Cryptoquant’s research points to a sharp deceleration in demand growth since December 2024. At the start of December, apparent demand added 279,000 bitcoin, but by January, this growth had diminished to just 75,000 BTC. Cryptoquant cautions that without a revival in demand momentum, sustained price rallies will remain elusive.
Another critical factor, as highlighted by Cryptoquant’s analysts, is the reduced selling pressure evident in January. In December, as bitcoin neared the $100,000 milestone, daily realized profits surged to $10 billion. By contrast, realized profits have now dropped to $2–$3 billion per day. This decrease, combined with traders’ unrealized profit margins approaching zero, implies that much of the profit-taking has subsided, likely easing selling activity for the time being.
The Cryptoquant report shows that ethereum ( ETH), however, continues to trail behind bitcoin, according to the researcher’s figures. Since late 2023, ETH has dropped 43% relative to BTC. This decline is partly attributed to an unexpected resurgence in supply inflation. While Ethereum’s Merge upgrade in 2022 was anticipated to render its supply deflationary, ETH’s total supply has instead risen from 120.0 million in Apr. 2024 to 120.5 million, erasing the expected benefits of the Merge.
