Bitcoin Falls Below $42,000 As Short Term Holders Rush To Cash In

Bitcoin is currently witnessing a decline in price, with its value dropping below the $42,000 mark. This movement comes on the heels of a significant uptick in the circulating supply of profitable Bitcoin, prompting a wave of profit-taking among investors.

ETC Group’s Head of Research, André Dragosch, highlights this trend, noting an increase in Bitcoin being moved to exchanges for potential sale. Dragosch noted, citing data from Glassnode:

Overall exchange balances for bitcoin have clearly picked up, implying a net inflow of coins to exchanges over the past week. More specifically, around +14k BTC have flown into exchanges on a net basis according to data provided by Glassnode. This will likely exert some downside pressure on prices in the short term.

Bitcoin Short-Term Holders Drive Selling Pressure

According to the ETC Group, the current market scenario presents a landscape where a substantial portion of Bitcoin and Ethereum addresses are profitable. Data from the firm indicates that 88.3% of BTC addresses and 77.6% of ETH addresses are currently profitable, figures hovering near the highest for the year.

This environment of a high percentage of BTC and ETH addresses being in a state of profit has seemingly encouraged a segment of investors, particularly those with a short-term investment perspective, to capitalize on their gains, as indicated by the ETC Group’s analysis.

The ETC group further revealed that these short-term investors, defined as those who have held Bitcoin for less than 155 days, have been transferring their profitable assets to exchanges at a rate not seen since July of this year.

This surge in selling pressure is attributed to a key factor restraining the Bitcoin rally as the market adjusts to the increased availability of the cryptocurrency.

Further illustrating the market’s reaction, the past week marked the first instance of “net outflows” from crypto asset exchange-traded products (ETPs) since early October.

The total amount of these outflows was approximately $18.2 million, with Bitcoin ETPs experiencing the majority of these withdrawals, totaling $13.1 million. In contrast, Ethereum ETPs saw a “net inflow” of $5.8 million, suggesting a diverging investor interest between the two leading crypto.

Market Impact And Trader Liquidations

The recent decline in Bitcoin’s price from its previous high of around $44,000 has impacted investor sentiment and resulted in significant trader liquidations. According to data from Coinglass, over the last 24 hours, there have been 115,873 trader liquidations, culminating in roughly $424.67 million in total liquidations.

Bitcoin has led these liquidations, with $105.51 million in long liquidations and $14.95 million in short liquidations. Ethereum follows closely, accounting for $78.53 million in long and $7.41 million in short liquidations.

It is worth noting that these liquidations and the fluctuating market dynamics underscore the division of trader’s fate in the crypto market. While some investors seize the opportunity to realize profits, others face the challenges of rapid market shifts.

Featured image from Unsplash, Chart from TradingView