Blockchain tracking service Whale Alert has reported a 1,500 BTC transfer (worth approximately $128 million) between Bitfinex and Kraken, two of the leading cryptocurrency exchanges globally.
Following the transfer, there has been speculation within the crypto community on the impact of this movement on Bitcoin's price.
In contrast to transfers to private wallets, this BTC transfer between two popular exchanges could indicate possible arbitrage activity or trading rather than long-term storage. The participants involved in this transfer could be doing so to take advantage of price differences between exchanges, otherwise known as arbitrage opportunities.
It could also mean the two crypto platforms are preparing for large buy or sell orders in what could be termed liquidity shifts. Security reasons or trading flexibility could be other motivations for splitting holdings across exchanges by the BTC whale.
Some analysts speculate that the Bitcoin whale could be preparing to make a sell move and buy altcoins, since Kraken offers more trading pairs compared to Bitfinex. In the past, large transfers between exchanges often preceded price dips, as such transactions suggest selling pressure.
Bitcoin market remains steady despite recent whale activity
Nevertheless, there are situations where whales move funds to access better trading options, which doesn't impact the market immediately. Analysts suggest that the best way to determine the purpose of this sale is to monitor the price of BTC in the next few hours.
If the price of BTC drops, then it would confirm that the purpose of this whale transfer was to sell. At the time of writing, there have been no significant changes to the price of the leading cryptocurrency.
Besides whale activities, there are other factors that affect BTC's price. These include technological advancements, economic news, regulatory developments, and broader sentiments in the financial markets.
Alex DovbnyaEarlier, Whale Alert revealed the transfer of 637 BTC (valued at about $59.4 million) to an unknown wallet. However, it is not certain whether the two transfers are connected, although Kraken is involved in both transactions.
It is typical for investors to move funds to unknown wallets for long-term storage. BTC’s value has been on the rise in the last few hours, moving from $92,000 to $94,000.
Following the rise in BTC’s price, the coin’s founder, Satoshi Nakamoto, is back in the billion-dollar club as his holdings are now worth $102 billion, as recently reported by U.Today.
BTC currently trades at $94,032, according to CoinGecko data.
Vladislav Sopov
Dan Burgin