Bitcoin: Will $1.12B whale sell-off fuel BTC’s slide toward $88K?

Key Takeaways

What’s driving Bitcoin’s continued decline below $100k?

Aggressive selling by whales, miners, and institutions has intensified downward pressure on BTC’s price.

What technical indicators suggest further downside risk for Bitcoin? 

The SMI Ergodic Oscillator and RVI both signal persistent bearish momentum and rising volatility.

Since falling below the $100,000 mark, Bitcoin [BTC] has remained under that level for eight straight days, a stretch of losses not seen since the post-Liberation Day dip in early April.

In fact, at press time, Bitcoin was trading at $92,229, up 0.38% on daily charts. Before these minor gains, BTC had been on a downward trajectory, dropping by 11.03% on weekly charts. 

Amid this prolonged bearish trend, prominent market players have capitulated and increased their spending significantly.

Bitcoin holders are aggressively dumping

Undoubtedly, BTC has continued to decline amid intense selling pressure from whales and other large entities. According to Checkonchain data, Holder Net Position Change has remained negative through Q4. 

At the time of writing, this metric had declined to -60.07k BTC, the lowest levels since early August, reflecting intense selling from holders. 

In fact, Lookonchain observed such selling activity. According to the on-chain monitor, Bitcoin OG Owen Gunden sold all his remaining 2,499 BTC, worth $228 million, via Kraken. 

The OG has been on an aggressive selling spree, dumping all 11k BTC, worth $1.12 billion, reflecting strong bearish sentiment from him. 

At the same time, BlackRock deposited another 6,735 BTC, valued at $616 million, into Coinbase Prime, further raising sell-off fears. 

Miners also spoil the party

Coupled with that, Bitcoin miners have also been on a selling spree, offloading 71.9k BTC over the past seven days. 

Mara Holdings is one such miner. According to Lookonchain, MARA deposited 644 BTC, worth $58.7 million, to FalconX and Coinbase Prime.

Often, miners sell during a dip over thinning margins and are forced to offload to fund operational costs. 

In total, these three entities have offloaded 9,878 BTC, worth $902.7 million, over the past day. Typically, increased sales from these two groups add more pressure on an already weak market, risking further losses.

Is $88k support at risk?

According to AMBCrypto, Bitcoin’s downtrend has prolonged as it grapples with increased selling from holders.

As a result, the SMI Ergodic Oscillator has remained negative for nine consecutive days, settling at -0.03 at press time, indicating sellers’ dominance.

Meanwhile, Bitcoin’s Relative Volatility Index (RVI) has remained below 50 for eight straight days, a level that typically indicates increasing downside volatility and strengthening bearish momentum.

Given these conditions, BTC remains vulnerable to further losses. If selling pressure persists alongside rising volatility, Bitcoin could dip below the $90,000 mark once again.

Should the $88,000 support level break, the next key support lies near $86,482. To reverse this bearish outlook, BTC would need a daily close above $93,428.