- Wallets holding 10–10,000 BTC added 86,702 BTC in about three weeks (Santiment)
- Their combined holdings are the highest since April 23
- The number of such wallets hit an all-time high of 20,338
- Spot Bitcoin ETFs saw ~$228M net outflows in the same week
- Price slid from ~$87,000 (Oct 4) to ~$81,000
- 24,073 BTC left exchanges on Oct 5, the biggest one-day outflow in seven months
- Key levels: $81,300 support, $84,000–$84,500 resistance
- This is not financial advice
While most of the market was selling, Bitcoin’s biggest holders were quietly buying. Wallets holding between 10 and 10,000 BTC added roughly 86,000 coins since mid-September, even as spot Bitcoin ETFs bled money and the price slid.
The whale data
According to analytics firm Santiment, wallets holding 10–10,000 BTC added 86,702 BTC in about three weeks, pushing their combined holdings to the highest level since April 23. The number of wallets in that bracket reached an all-time high of 20,338 on October 15. On October 5, a net 24,073 BTC was withdrawn from centralized exchanges — the largest single-day outflow in seven months — cutting the share of supply held on exchanges to about 6.5%.
The ETF contrast
The same week, spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded net outflows of around $228 million. So the two biggest holder groups moved in opposite directions: funds sold, whales bought.
What the price did
The buying did not stop the slide: Bitcoin fell from an early-October high near $87,000 to about $80,000 on October 8, and was trading near $81,000–$83,000 around October 19. Analysts cited by Gadgets 360 put support at $81,300 and say a move above $84,000–$84,500 could strengthen the recovery.
Why the signal cuts both ways
Santiment notes this pace of whale buying has appeared only twice in the past year, and the two precedents point in opposite directions: similar buying in mid-April 2026 was followed by higher prices, while the stretch from late November 2025 to mid-January 2026 came before a 34% drop. Whale accumulation is a real signal, not a guarantee.
What to watch next
ETF flows turning positive again, the Federal Reserve meeting around October 28, whether $81,300 support holds, and whether exchange balances keep falling. Like gold — which we covered in our Diwali gold post — Bitcoin is being watched as a hedge while US inflation sits at 3.7%. Source: Gadgets 360 reports.
This post is not financial advice. Crypto is volatile and unregulated — never invest money you cannot afford to lose.