U.Today - With Bitcoin (BTC) finally staying strong above $100,000, some traders might be already interested in taking profits from this crypto rally. Recent on-chain data analysis by CryptoQuant community author shows that long-term holders of digital gold are not in this cohort.
Bitcoin (BTC) long-term holders are not selling; bullish?
Long-term holders of Bitcoin (BTC), i.e., on-chain accounts that purchased BTC at least seven years ago, are not sending their holdings to exchanges yet. Such analysis was shared today, Feb. 1, 2025, by pseudonymous crypto researcher who goes by Crypto SunMoon, a featured CryptoQuant community author.According to him, during the 2017-2021 crypto rally, long-term holders started selling their riches right before the bullish phase ended. For now, we are nowhere near this stage yet, data says.
As demonstrated by the researcher, the latest major inflows to centralized exchanges driven by long-term holders were registered in late Q1, 2024. However, they were not as impressive as those that accompanied the previous BTC all-time high in November 2021.
In some of the largest altcoins, similar processes are dominating on-chain supply. For instance, over 70% of both Ethereum (ETH) and Litecoin (LTC) owners have been holding their riches for 12 months minimum.
As such, various groups of long-term holders are demonstrating confidence in the crypto rally, while the selling pressure comes mainly from "paper hands."
USDT, USDC metrics look optimistic for Bitcoin (BTC) bulls
While Bitcoin (BTC) inflows to exchanges look pale, major stablecoins, including USDT and USDC, are revealing the opposite trend. In the last three months, USDT supply on CEXes jumped by 40% and reached an all-time high over $43 billion.The aggregated supply of stablecoins is also growing at an increased pace. Since early November 2024, it increased from $160 billion to $224 billion, as per CoinGecko data.
While USDT remains the largest stablecoin, USDC is the fastest-growing one. Combined, their capitalization upsurges are also treated as a sign of a prolonged bull market for Bitcoin (BTC) and major altcoins.