Significant amounts of Bitcoin (BTC) have been flowing out of crypto exchange Coinbase lately, and this could be a strong, bullish signal according to crypto data firm CryptoQuant's CEO Ki Young Ju today.
According to CryptoQuant’s data, just yesterday over 15,200 BTC—worth nearly $500 million—flowed out from Coinbase Pro. This was likely due to huge over-the-counter (OTC) trades made by institutional players, Ju asserted.
“[Bitcoin] went to custody wallets that only have in-going transactions. It's likely to be OTC deals from institutional investors,” he tweeted, adding, “I believe this is the strongest bullish signal.”
Over 15,200 Bitcoin transferred from Coinbase Pro. Image: CryptoQuant
According to Ju, this outflow of Bitcoin was moved in transactions ranging from around 1,100 BTC ($35 million) to 4,400 BTC ($150 million). While this could have been transactions between different wallets held by the exchange, there is usually no reason to split large wallets into smaller ones. Additionally, Coinbase’s custody service is integrated with its OTC desks, which further points towards OTC activity, Ju added.
While institutional traders use OTC desks when they want to buy or sell large amounts of an asset without sending some ripples across the market, these purchases can still affect Bitcoin’s price. This is because markets have a tendency to balance themselves out, so when the supply of something is reduced—and demand from retail investors stays the same—OTC deals could lead to an upward price momentum anyway, albeit a delayed one.
As Decrypt reported, large institutional companies are steadily buying more Bitcoin lately. Grayscale alone holds around $23 billion in its Bitcoin Trust, for example, while BlockFi has recently submitted its registration form for a similar trust. So while the price may have retraced from its Elon Musk-fuelled high, demand is going through the roof.
Daily Debrief Newsletter
Start every day with the top news stories right now, plus original features, a podcast, videos and more.
Thailand has shut the door on unregulated foreign crypto services as it ramps up efforts to tackle online financial crime, backed by sweeping new legal amendments that target everything from mule accounts to rogue P2P platforms.
The Thai Securities and Exchange Commission announced Tuesday that the cabinet has approved updates to key emergency decrees, introducing new measures to regulate digital asset businesses and prevent cybercrime.
The SEC said the new laws will be used for “deterring and p...
On Wednesday, Westpac CEO Anthony Miller apologised to a customer after the bank blocked a $30,000 transfer to Australian crypto exchange CoinSpot and froze their accounts.
The customer, known only as Tim, had deposited $50,000 into his Westpac account earlier this month and attempted to move a portion of the funds to CoinSpot to invest in Bitcoin.
The transaction was halted, triggering a call from Westpac’s risk management team.
Tim recorded the conversation and played it on Sydney’s 2GB radi...
The price of various crypto-linked stocks soared on Wednesday after U.S. President Donald Trump unveiled a 90-day pause on implementing most of his “reciprocal” tariffs.
Strategy, Coinbase and major Bitcoin miners were well into positive territory as U.S. markets closed, reversing more than a week of steep losses.
The president said over 180 countries would see temporary relief “effective immediately,” although Chinese goods would still be subject to stiff levies, raising the total rate on the...