Bitcoin Nears $100,000 as Whales Snap Up $1.5 Billion

The cryptocurrency market extended its post-Thanksgiving rally, with Bitcoin (BTC) striving to breach the $100,000 mark.

Over the past 24 hours, BTC gained 2.2% to trade at $97,200, while Ethereum (ETH) and Solana (SOL) rose by 1% and 2%, respectively. The total crypto market capitalization climbed to $3.54 trillion.

XRP led gains among major cryptocurrencies, surging nearly 15% in the past 24 hours. This Thanksgiving, Bitcoin appears to have avoided the historical “massacre” often associated with the period, with markets experiencing slight upward momentum.

In the past 24 hours, 83,071 traders were liquidated, with total liquidations reaching $194.29 million, according to data from CoinGlass.

According to Google Trends data, search interest for “Bitcoin” is relatively low at 54, compared to its peak of 100 in December 2017 during the historic bull run.

“Investor sentiment remains subdued, far from euphoric — indicating Bitcoin may still have significant room to grow before reaching a market top,” said on-chain analyst Ali Martinez.

Whales Buy Bitcoin Dip

Large Bitcoin holders, known as whales, capitalized on the recent market dip as Bitcoin declined to the $90,000 level, accumulating roughly $1.5 billion in BTC. On Tuesday, nearly 16,000 BTC flowed into whale reserves, a trend that continued throughout the week.

Short-term investors offloaded nearly $4 billion worth of Bitcoin to exchanges during the dip, creating opportunities for accumulation, per data from CryptoQuant. However, this activity was mostly concentrated among institutional players.

“For now, this spot buying volume has not yet been sufficient to demonstrate a more widespread ‘buy-the-dip’ pattern, remaining heavily concentrated among institutional players,” noted CryptoQuant contributor Cauê Oliveira. “We will need a larger spot buying volume between retail and institutions to achieve a new all-time high.”

Martinez pointed to a critical demand zone for Bitcoin.

“One key demand zone for Bitcoin to watch is $93,580, where 667,000 addresses bought nearly 504,000 BTC. Staying above this support level is a must to prevent these holders from selling!” Martinez tweeted.

Ethereum ETFs Outperform Bitcoin ETFs

Spot Ethereum exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have outpaced their Bitcoin counterparts in attracting investors since Nov. 22.

Over four trading days, spot Ether ETFs recorded $225 million in net inflows, compared to $35.2 million for Bitcoin ETFs, according to data from Farside Investors.