Bitcoin News Today: Bitcoin's "Digital Gold" Allure Fuels Whale Awakenings and $446M ETF Inflows

Bitcoin's 2025 price peaks have triggered a historic reactivation of dormant whale wallets, with over 14-year-old addresses transferring substantial holdings. A standout move involved 80,000 BTC—valued at over $1 billion—moved after 14 years of inactivity, while a Satoshi-era wallet transferred 150 BTC to exchanges, reducing its balance to 3,850 coins, according to a TradingView report. These movements, driven by sustained price appreciation, highlight evolving strategies among long-term holders, including direct sales, staking, and lending protocols to extract value without liquidating assets .

The market's resilience to whale selling pressures has been notable. Despite large-volume transfers, Bitcoin's ecosystem absorbed the outflows, with over 53% of the circulating supply still held by individuals . Institutional adoption and decentralized finance (DeFi) tools, such as perpetual decentralized exchange (DEX) trading, enabled whales to hedge or speculate without destabilizing spot prices. For instance, some moved coins to DEX platforms for derivative positions, minimizing immediate market disruption .

Meanwhile, Bitcoin ETFs have seen robust inflows, with $446 million entering spot ETFs last week alone, according to a Coinotag report. BlackRock's IBIT and Fidelity's FBTC led the charge, adding $32.68 million and $57.92 million, respectively . This contrasts sharply with Ethereum ETFs, which logged $243.9 million in outflows, as Coinotag reports, with investors rotating capital to Bitcoin amid macroeconomic uncertainties .

Ethereum's weaker on-chain activity and lack of fresh catalysts have further fueled the rotation. While Ethereum ETFs hold $26.39 billion in assets—5.55% of its market cap—their inflows have stagnated compared to Bitcoin's 6.78% market cap exposure through ETFs, the Coinpedia analysis notes. Experts like Vincent Liu of Kronos Research note that Ethereum may rebound if network upgrades or DeFi growth rekindle demand, but for now, Bitcoin's dominance in ETF flows underscores its matured market position .

The interplay between these trends signals a maturing crypto ecosystem. While whale activations grab headlines, the influx of retail and institutional participants dilutes their singular impact, fostering balanced price discovery. As Bitcoin ETF inflows continue, investors are advised to monitor on-chain activity and regulatory developments, which could further shape the asset's trajectory.

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