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Bitcoin Holding Sentiment Strongest in Nearly Two Years
The amount of bitcoin held on crypto exchanges is down to a 21-month low, a sign investors are feeling bullish.
Updated Sep 14, 2021, 9:45 a.m. Published Aug 18, 2020, 11:49 a.m.
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Bitcoin exchange reserves have fallen to a 21-month low, a possible sign investors are feeling bullish about the shape of the market.
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- Glassnode data shows the number of bitcoins held in exchange addresses fell by 0.83% to 2,610,278 BTC on Monday, the lowest level since Nov. 24, 2018.
- Investors tend to move digital assets from their wallets and onto exchanges when they lose confidence in the current price movement so they can easily sell them.
- In the days leading up to the Black Thursday sell-off, when bitcoin crashed by 40%, exchange balances surged by 2% to a high of 2,947,555 BTC.
- But bitcoin has since surged to a 13-month high of $12,400 on Monday and is currently up 200% from the $3,867 low it fell to five months ago.
- As such, exchange balances are down 1.4% over the past week, and nearly 3% in the last month. Balances were down more than 11% from the March 13 high at press time.
- The price rises come despite bitcoin looking increasingly overbought on the weekly chart relative strength index (RSI) – an indicator that helps traders recognize the signs of overbought and oversold markets.
- eToro analyst Simon Peters told CoinDesk: “Lower BTC spot exchange balance indicates a current holding mentality among investors, I see this as being pretty bullish."
See also: First Mover: As Wall Street Goes Topsy-Turvy, Crypto Traders Are Bullish as Ever
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KuCoin captured a record share of centralised exchange volume in 2025, with more than $1.25tn traded as its volumes grew faster than the wider crypto market.
What to know:
- KuCoin recorded over $1.25 trillion in total trading volume in 2025, equivalent to an average of roughly $114 billion per month, marking its strongest year on record.
- This performance translated into an all-time high share of centralised exchange volume, as KuCoin’s activity expanded faster than aggregate CEX volumes, which slowed during periods of lower market volatility.
- Spot and derivatives volumes were evenly split, each exceeding $500 billion for the year, signalling broad-based usage rather than reliance on a single product line.
- Altcoins accounted for the majority of trading activity, reinforcing KuCoin’s role as a primary liquidity venue beyond BTC and ETH at a time when majors saw more muted turnover.
- Even as overall crypto volumes softened mid-year, KuCoin maintained elevated baseline activity, indicating structurally higher user engagement rather than short-lived volume spikes.
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Bitcoin stuck near $88,000 as gold's and silver's record-breaking rallies show exhaustion signs
"Gold and silver casually adding an entire bitcoin market cap in a single day," wrote one crypto analyst.
What to know:
- Bitcoin is off its worst levels of the weekend, but still near the year's low at $87,700.
- Facing the same news cycle as crypto, precious metals continued to surge higher, but a quick retreat from their highs on Monday suggested a bit of exhaustion was setting in.
- Analysts remain dour on the outlook for crypto prices given the looming government shutdown as well as delays in passage of the Clarity Act.
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