A Bitcoin miner has moved 2,000 BTC (worth nearly $200 million) he has held since 2010 to Coinbase, the latest in a new crypto industry trend in which early BTC holders sell or move their funds after years of inactivity.
On-chain analysts have noticed that more whales are selling their holdings in waves starting in late 2024. In 2025, Whale's holdings dropped to 3 million BTC, raising concerns that the sale would destabilize the market.
Why are Bitcoin holders selling now?
A rewarded Bitcoin miner in 2010 moved 2,000 BTC to Coinbase Exchange after storing his coins untouched for 15 years. At the current price of nearly $100,000 per Bitcoin, this transfer is worth nearly $200 million.
miner This is how Bitcoin addresses originally worked in 2010, before newer and better formats were introduced.
According to a report by CryptoQuant, after BTC crossed $100,000 for the first time in December 2024, there were three major selling periods in late 2024, July 2025, and November 2025.
In July 2025, a whale moved 80,000 BTC that had been dormant for 14 years. Galaxy Digital backed the transaction, which was worth about $9 billion at a time when Bitcoin was trading at nearly $108,000. The company's CEO, Mike Novogratz, acknowledged that companies such as Strategy and other corporate Bitcoin buyers were able to quickly purchase Bitcoin without causing the market to collapse. Strategies that have already been acquired 673,783 BTC as of early 2025.
Will the price of BTC fall due to whale sales?
Bitcoin's value was over $126,000 in early October 2025, but by mid-December it had fallen 30% to about $86,000. During the first two waves of whales selling their holdings, demand for Bitcoin ETFs was stronger than supply from sellers. Even as older holders cashed out, prices continued to rise due to ETF inflows.
Once ETF buying subsided and a new wave of whale activity arrived in November, prices finally began to fall.
After mining rewards were cut in half due to the BTC halving event, mining companies needed to sell more Bitcoin to cover electricity bills and operating costs.
Riot Platforms, a leading Bitcoin mining company, reported selling 1,818 BTC during December, generating a net profit of $161.6 million at an average price of $88,870 per coin. The sales reported in the filing were a significant increase from November, when the company sold just 38 BTC.
Back in January 2025, another dormant whale caused controversy by transferring 500 BTC worth $47 million to Coinbase Prime after being inactive for six years. The wallet originally received these coins when Bitcoin was trading at around $7,000. This means the holder received a 13x return on their investment.
Market observers have debated whether Bitcoin typically follows a traditional four-year cycle that includes a bear market after a price peak. Ki Young Ju, CEO of CryptoQuant, believes the market has changed because ETFs and corporate bonds have created new demand that did not exist in previous cycles. He believes further gains could be made in 2026 if institutional investors continue to buy.
Cryptopolitan reports that investment firms such as Berstein, Bitwise, Standard Chartered, and Grayscale agree with CryptoQuant executives in rejecting the importance of four-year cycles, as more relevant macro factors emerge depending on the maturity and regulatory landscape of the crypto market.
