CryptoQuant: Whale, Dolphin Bitcoin Accumulation Stalls

On-chain analytics firm CryptoQuant reported that wallets holding between 1,000 and 10,000 bitcoin — its definition of whales, excluding exchange and mining pool addresses — are contracting year-over-year at the fastest rate seen so far this year. Dolphin wallets, defined as holding 100 to 1,000 bitcoin and including many ETFs and corporate treasuries, continue to show positive annual growth but that growth has slowed sharply.

CryptoQuant’s Head of Research, Julio Moreno, wrote that whale wallets have moved from active accumulation to a “neutral-to-slight-distribution posture.” Dolphin annual growth peaked at about 0.97 million bitcoin in October 2025 and has since fallen well below trend, the report states.

Monthly balance growth for both cohorts has approached zero at the same time. Dolphin monthly growth has produced lower highs since September 2025, while whale monthly growth has been essentially flat since February 2026. The report notes periods when both cohorts’ monthly growth simultaneously nears zero have historically come before sustained price weakness.

Long-term holder supply reached a record 15.8 million bitcoin, the firm reported. Moreno cautioned that a rise in long-term holder supply does not necessarily indicate new accumulation: “Long-term holder supply rises when bitcoin does not change hands at scale, meaning short-term demand is too weak to absorb coins from long-term holders,” he wrote. The increase can reflect coins being retained rather than fresh buyers entering the market.

Short-term holder supply declined from roughly 6.4 million bitcoin in December 2025 to about 4.2 million bitcoin currently, a drop of more than 2.1 million. CryptoQuant estimated about 900,000 bitcoin of that decline came from Coinbase reserves aging past the firm’s 155-day threshold and shifting into the long-term holder classification, a mechanical accounting change that raised long-term figures without representing new demand.

Moreno compared current conditions to March 2022, when whale accumulation stalled before turning negative, and noted the simultaneous slowdown in whale and dolphin accumulation alongside shrinking short-term supply. He wrote that these dynamics reflect weak demand.

Bitcoin’s price has fallen from a peak above $126,000 in October to around $73,400 at the time of the report. CryptoQuant’s analysis states that with large non-exchange holders no longer adding significant monthly balances and exchange and short-term supplies shrinking, pressure on price could persist if new buying does not materialize.