The decline in the crypto market prices, including top cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum, has attracted the attention of large-scale investors. On-chain records indicate that whales have already bought over $350M of ETH at low prices. According to analysts, such acquisitions are not run-of-the-mill retail deals, but rather institutional-level transactions in the form of over-the-counter (OTC) deals.
When Ethereum hit a low price of $3,200 last week, a newly created wallet bought 10,000 ETH, worth approximately $34 million. According to Arkham Intelligence data, this week, the wallet added another 10,000 ETH, bringing its total holdings to about $70 million in ETH.
Meanwhile, another large investor purchased 24,007 ETH, worth around $82 million, over the Galaxy Digital OTC desk, as reported by Etherscan.
Furthermore, the largest purchase was made by an investor who acquired nearly 58,811 AaveETH, which cost approximately $206 million. This positioning indicates an increasing interest from institutional investors who capitalize during low price levels as a build-up stage, rather than a risk-off measure.
According to market analysts, these actions are a sign of confidence in the long-term outlook for the Ethereum price. According to Rachel Lin, the CEO and Co-Founder of SynFutures, the volume of the transaction and the OTC trade execution is more of an institutional accumulation, which contrasts with retail speculation. The trend suggests a strategic move to take positions ahead of market catalysts.
CryptoQuant indicators also show that wallets holding 10,000 to 100,000 ETH have increased their balances by approximately 7.6 million tokens since April, which is a 52% increase. Retail addresses with fewer holdings have conversely cut their exposure by 16%. This deviation indicates a clear accumulation trend from large investors, despite the cautious sentiment among retail investors.
Also Read: Is Ethereum Heading for a Bullish Breakout or a Market Trap?
Ethereum has recovered by almost 10% from its recent low of $4,200. At the time of writing, the price was trading between $3,400 and $3,500 in the last 24 hours. Part of this resurgence, according to analysts, is credited to whale accumulation and fresh institutional investments. Furthermore, future catalysts like the Fusaka network upgrade and monetary policies could affect investor activity, making them of keen interest to market participants.
According to Myriad, a prediction site, the likelihood of Ethereum rebounding above $4,000 before falling to $2,500 is predicted to be approximately 69%. Although the macroeconomic trends are unpredictable across crypto assets, recent on-chain data indicate that large investors are positioning for the long-term price movement of Ethereum.