The number of Bitcoin wallets holding 100 or more BTC has surged to a 17-month high, indicating growing interest from large-scale investors amid market uncertainty.

Bitcoin Whale Wallets Reach 17-Month Peak

The number of Bitcoin wallets containing 100 BTC or more has recently reached a 17-month high, per Cointelegraph, following a jump in hodling over the past month.

Based on data revealed in an Aug. 31 X post by Blockchain analytics firm Santiment, more than 283 wallets were able to surpass the 100 Bitcoin milestone in August.

Bitcoin whales are multiplying as a result of retail traders' disappointment with cryptocurrency prices. The number of wallets holding 100 BTC or more has increased by 283 in just one month, according to Santiment.

"With 16,120 wallets now live on the network, we've surpassed a 17-month high."

Sharks Continue to Accumulate Bitcoin

At the same time, Santiment noted that "sharks," or wallets with 10 Bitcoin or more, had been amassing even more cryptocurrency.

All in all, the blockchain analytics platform calculates that in the past 30 days, these 10–10,000 Bitcoin wallets have amassed approximately 133,000 coins, with a combined value of about $7.6 billion.

Blockstream CEO and Hashcash creator Adam Back made the observation that whales have been buying Bitcoin at a rate of about $58,000 per coin since the price dropped from over $62,000 on August 28.

Daily Whale Purchases Equal Bitcoin Mining Output

Since the 28th, whales have been buying 450 BTC every day, minute by minute, all day long. The same as the number of Bitcoins mined daily. He gave the order to sell the grain at a low price.

These "smaller traders" who "continue to impatiently drop their holdings to them," according to Santiment, are responsible for the uptick in whale activity.

Smaller Traders Pressure to Sell Amid Market Drop

In a post on September 1st, crypto expert and contributor to CryptoQuant Axel Adler Jr. hinted that smaller traders may be feeling pressured to sell if the price falls below their entry point.

Even if it is now -8%, the indicator has never dropped below 17% throughout the present bull market. "If it keeps going down, there could be twice as many people ready to sell coins for a loss," he said.

At the time of writing on Sept. 2, the Crypto Fear & Greed Index, which measures mood in the cryptocurrency market, was 26. With an average rating of 37, the index revealed more days of dread than greed throughout August.

Market Awaits Bitcoin Rally Amid Whale Activity

Regardless, according to Bitgrow Lab CEO Vivek Sen, the market might be taking the increased whale activity positively.

According to him, large-scale purchases by whales have frequently been seen before Bitcoin reaches new all-time highs in the past.

"When whales purchased a lot of Bitcoin, it reached a new all-time high," Sen stated.