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Bitcoin Profit Taking Appears Modest Even Near All-Time High
Glassnode data shows long-term holders driving realized profits, while overall selling remains subdued, signaling potential for further gains.
Aug 12, 2025, 2:53 p.m.
What to know:
- Daily realized profits remain under $750 million, far below January and July peaks of $2 billion, even with bitcoin trading near record highs.
- Long-term holders continue to dominate profit realization, with only brief spikes from short-term holders during major price rallies.
Over the past five days, bitcoin has surged from $116,000 to just above $122,000 before retreating to the current $119,000. Despite this price movement, profit-taking has remained muted, averaging under $750 million per day on a year-to-date basis.
For perspective, Glassnode data shows that in January daily realized profits were around $2 billion, with similar spikes in July when bitcoin reached its all-time high of $123,000.
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Glassnode’s Realized Profit metric measures the total profit from all spent coins where the sale price exceeded the acquisition price. When broken down by Long-Term Holders (LTH) and Short-Term Holders (STH), it offers a more granular view of market behavior. This classification is based on the weighted average acquisition date, with LTH supply defined as holdings aged more than roughly 155 days.
The data reveals that LTHs have consistently realized far more profit than STHs. An exception occurred in July, when STH realized profits spiked as bitcoin hit its all-time high. Many of these short-term gains likely came from investors who bought during the March “tariff tantrum” sell-off, when bitcoin fell to $76,000.
The current low level of realized profit-taking, particularly compared with prior market peaks, is encouraging for bitcoin’s bullish outlook. It suggests that holders, both long and short term, are largely refraining from locking in gains despite recent price increases. If this trend persists, it could provide the market with the stability and momentum needed to push toward new all-time highs.
AI Disclaimer: Parts of this article were generated with the assistance from AI tools and reviewed by our editorial team to ensure accuracy and adherence to our standards. For more information, see CoinDesk's full AI Policy.
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