Bitcoin deposits to centralized exchanges—often a precursor for sales—spiked in the last week as BTC fell below $60,000, according to data gathered by blockchain analytics firm CryptoQuant. 

Deposits of the top crypto asset reached nearly 50,000 BTC a day, hitting that mark for only the fourth time thus far this year. In all other instances, it led to a significant increase in price volatility, according to the firm. 

"The spike coincides with Bitcoin testing the critical $60K support level, which, if breached, could take Bitcoin towards $53K, the realized price," the CryptoQuant report from Thursday reads. "At these inflow levels, the market is absorbing a large volume of Bitcoin being repositioned to exchanges, a pattern that has historically preceded significant directional moves." 

It wasn't just the quantity of deposits increasing, but the size of them as well. During the period the average Bitcoin deposit approximately doubled from 1 BTC to 2 BTC, an indicator that the deposit surge is being driven by whales and institutions, not retail traders, the firm said. 

In the past, this indicator has preceded downward price movement. 

"Historically, a spike in average deposit size from larger entities is a more bearish signal than high inflow volume alone, as it indicates deliberate repositioning rather than routine activity," the report notes.

Bitcoin's peers were not spared, with Ethereum daily inflows peaking at 1.25 million per day and other altcoin deposit transactions also jumping considerably to more than 45,000 per day. Their respective spikes further support the likelihood of a period of increased volatility for the crypto market.

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"Historically, surges in altcoin deposit transactions have marked inflection points for crypto prices and signaled increased volatility ahead," the report notes. "This signal already played out precisely in 2026: Bitcoin's decline from $82K in early May to below $58K in late June was preceded by a similar spike in altcoin deposits above 45K." 

After spending some time below $60,000, Bitcoin has rebounded moderately this week, jumping 3.5% to trade at $62,886. As it stands, BTC is now just over 50% off its October all-time high of $126,080. 

Meanwhile, Ethereum gained nearly 12% this week to change hands at $1,787—about 64% off its all-time high of $4,946.