Over $3 Billion In Ether Leaves Exchanges as Whale Accumulation Soars

More than $3 billion worth of ETH has exited exchanges amidst a surge in whale accumulation. Following the green light for the Ethereum Spot ETF on May 24, 2024, investors have been pulling their ETH from exchanges, hopeful that subsequent approvals could prompt significant price spikes.

Analyst “burakkesmeci” from Cryptoquant revealed this trend on Monday, noting a withdrawal of over 800,000 Ethereum from exchanges post-ETF approval, amounting to roughly $3 billion over an 8-day period.

And while the identity of those behind these sizable purchases remains elusive, the pundit pointed to either whales or individuals anticipating price increases post-ETF approval, terming the trend as bullish.

“Who is behind the purchases exceeding $3 billion? I can provide two different answers to this question. Whales or individuals who think the price will rise after the Spot ETF approval. Institutions preparing for the Spot ETF could be behind this wave of heavy outflow that lasted for 8 days,” wrote the pundit.

 “We can expect that the withdrawal of more than 800,000 Ethereum from exchanges in 8 days will have a positive impact on the price in the medium term,” he added.

This development echoes sentiments by analysts from Intotheblock, another crypto firm, which noted the intensification of whale accumulation in ETH. On May 31st, the firm reported that currently, 41% of the Ethereum supply is held by addresses with more than 1% of the total supply, marking an increase from 36% at the beginning of the year. This surge consolidates wealth and signifies growing confidence among larger stakeholders in Ethereum’s future.

Elsewhere, analysts like Michael Nadeau, Founder of the Defi Report, foresee significant growth in ETH ETFs. In a recent tweet, the pundit predicted a potential reallocation of funds from BTC ETFs into ETH ETFs when they commence trading, the emergence of a balanced BTC-ETH investment strategy, and the likelihood of institutions flocking to Ethereum amid its relative underappreciation compared to Bitcoin.

According to the pundit, Ethereum’s unique attributes, such as its lack of structural selling pressures faced by Bitcoin miners, a significant portion of its supply being locked in staking contracts and DeFi applications, and its pivotal role in the Web3 ecosystem, could help it rival Bitcoin as the new financial infrastructure, garnering attention from institutional investors. Notably, just last week, Bernstein analysts projected substantial growth in the cryptocurrency ETF market, estimating it to reach $450 billion within two years.

That said, despite the flurry of developments, Ethereum maintained a sideways trajectory on Monday, further extending a two-week-long consolidation phase that has enveloped its price action. ETH was trading at $3,811 at press time, reflecting a modest 0.89% uptick over the past 24 hours.