The number of Bitcoin (BTC) whales might be on the decline as revealed by on-chain data provided by Glassnode analytics. In an unusual reality, the number of addresses holding at least 100 units of Bitcoin, which in today’s valuation will be worth approximately $5 million, has hit a 1 year low of 15,958. 

The digital currency ecosystem has notably seen increased embrace from both retail and institutional investors in the past year. The declining number of Bitcoin whales is a testament that it may be very easy to confuse growing market activities with actual coin accumulation. The decline effectively implies that the total number of holders has shed off their bag, drifting off the 2021 peak of around 16,700 holders.

The past year saw the entry of major Wall Street giants such as Tesla, Square, and MicroStrategy Incorporation taking a sizeable chunk of the Bitcoin supply. From indications, the whales who came into the space were fewer but held a very high number of the Bitcoin. Following its latest acquisition of 3,907 Bitcoin units, MicroStrategy now HODLs as much as 108,992 Bitcoins bought at an average price of $26,769 apiece.

Bitcoin Whales Decline: Potential Impact on Price

Both the whale accumulation, often driven by institutional investors, and retail buyups have their inherent impact on the price of Bitcoin. While the big bag holders are poised to inject huge amounts per time, raising the price of the asset at such times as seen when Tesla investment stirred the run of Bitcoin to an All-Time High (ATH) of 42,360 back in February.

Retail investors are the source of the heightened exchange activities that help keep the trading volumes on the positive side. Increasing trading volumes are the source of small daily price jumps, an accumulation of which has helped maintain the price growth of the cryptocurrency amidst the past price correction.

With the heightened slump stirred by the Chinese government clampdown on Bitcoin and the digital currency market, the combined actions of both retail and institutional investors have placed the premier cryptocurrency on the right path for increased growth with Bitcoin notably facing the least resistance on its path to $100,000 according to Bloomberg analyst, Mike McGlone.

Bitcoin is changing hands at $50,146.79, up 0.46% at the time of writing according to CoinMarketCap.