Bitcoin faced a sharp sell-off on August 30, briefly tumbling below $108,000 to hit its lowest level since early July. The sudden drop was triggered by massive selling pressure from a single, long-dormant whale address that suddenly sprang to life, moving billions of dollars in BTC and shifting a significant portion into Ethereum.
The $5 Billion Whale Awakens
On-chain analytics firms sounded the alarm as a dormant whale, controlling over $5 billion in Bitcoin, began making large moves.
- Initial Move: The entity moved $1.1 billion in BTC to a new address.
- Ethereum Accumulation: It then began aggressively purchasing ETH, having already accumulated roughly $2.5 billion worth last week.
- Latest Action: Analytics firm Lookonchain reported the whale shifted 4,000 BTC (over $430M) into Hyperliquid early Saturday, further fueling speculation of a major rotation from BTC into ETH.
This kind of movement from a single large holder can create immense market pressure, and this time was no different.
Market Impact: Liquidations and Falling Prices
The whale’s actions sent ripples throughout the entire crypto market, resulting in a classic “risk-off” rotation.
- Bitcoin: Dropped ~2% in 24 hours, falling below $108,000.
- Ethereum: Gained ~2% over the same period as money flowed in.
- Liquidations: Total leveraged positions across crypto exceeded $400 million in a single day. Ethereum long positions were hit hardest ($133M wiped out), followed by Bitcoin longs ($109M).
Analyst Warning: Key Level to Hold
According to Julio Moreno, Head of Research at CryptoQuant, Bitcoin needs to stage a recovery quickly to prevent a deeper correction.
- Key Level to Reclaim:Â $112,000
- Downside Target if Broken: Could test support near $100,000
The firm’s Bull Score index has dropped to 20, signaling an “extreme bearish” environment. This metric needs to improve significantly for the market sentiment to turn positive again.
The Bottom Line
The market is currently at the mercy of large whale movements and negative sentiment. While such volatility is unsettling, it’s a reminder of the crypto market’s maturation—where the actions of a single entity can still cause significant short-term waves. For Bitcoin to stabilize and resume its uptrend, it must reclaim the $112,000 level. Until then, traders should brace for continued elevated volatility.
