Bitcoin holders are locking away more of the cryptocurrency than ever before, making the supply increasingly illiquid.
According to on-chain analytics platform Glassnode, the amount of Bitcoin categorized as “illiquid supply” has now reached a record high of 14 million BTC.
Illiquid BTC Supply Hits Record High
More Bitcoin is ending up in wallets belonging to investors who historically do not sell their holdings. Glassnode defines these as “illiquid entities”—wallets that have significantly more incoming BTC than outgoing, indicating they are hoarding rather than spending.
In a guide, Glassnode explains that the liquidity level of an entity is calculated using a metric ranging from 0 to 1, where higher values signal greater liquidity. A low score suggests the holder rarely moves their coins, typically reflecting long-term conviction in Bitcoin’s future price increase.
This week, the total illiquid BTC supply crossed 14 million, with a 30-day net increase of 180,000 BTC—the largest monthly rise since December 2022. That prior spike occurred as Bitcoin hit a cycle low near $15,000, wrapping up the previous bear market.
Whales Are Accumulating in Force
The current bull cycle is being defined by strong institutional involvement. Corporate treasuries—like that of Strategy—and rising inflows into spot Bitcoin ETFs are pushing BTC into the mainstream financial arena.
On-chain metrics show large holders, or “whales,” have been actively accumulating Bitcoin during the recent price rebound. In contrast, smaller retail holders are showing signs of fear.
In a post on X this week, analytics firm Santiment revealed that wallets holding between 10 and 10,000 BTC have collectively added over 83,000 BTC in the past 30 days. Meanwhile, holders of less than 0.1 BTC dumped a total of 387 BTC over the same period.
Santiment described both changes as substantial, considering the relative size of holdings in each group.
