Bitcoin (BTC) that has been dormant in its wallet for up to a decade is on the move, the latest data shows.
According to on-chain analytics platform CryptoQuant, thousands of coins are “waking up” daily as BTC price action challenges $70,000.
“Old” tranches of BTC move on-chain
Bitcoin on-chain volume is the source of intrigue this month as “older” coins return to circulation — in their thousands.
Source: Material Indicators
CryptoQuant’s Spent Output Age Bands metric shows that on June 2 alone, 2,800 BTC moved on-chain for the first time in between two and three years.
The tally for coins stationary for four to five years was even larger, at 4,500 BTC. June 3 also saw 210 BTC move, which had previously been in its wallet for a decade or more.
“Old coins moving, after old coins moving, after old coins moving,” CryptoQuant contributing analyst J. A. Maartunn wrote in part of accompanying commentary on X (formerly Twitter).
“In other words, distribution.”Bitcoin 3+ years Spent Output Age Bands. Source: CryptoQuant
Decade-old coins moving on-chain in fact occurs fairly regularly, but the latest stage of the Bitcoin bull market has seen an uptick in frequency.
CryptoQuant data shows this “oldest” cohort of BTC becoming more active beginning at the end of February — in the run-up to what remains Bitcoin’s all-time high of $73,800.
Bitcoin 10+ years Spent Output Age Bands. Source: CryptoQuant
Bitcoin long-term holders in a state of “inactivity”
As Cointelegraph reported, Bitcoin’s long-term holders (LTHs) — entities holding a given amount of BTC without selling it for 155 days or more — continue to broadly resist the temptation to divest themselves of coins.
Related: Bitcoin hash ribbons flash the first buy signal since $25K BTC price
As CryptoQuant noted last week, “newer” LTHs — owning coins dormant for one to two years — have indeed cooled distribution behavior.
“As Bitcoin’s price recovers from the recent correction to $56,000, we notice a shift in holder behavior. The 1-year+ and 2-year+ cohorts have ceased selling, transitioning from a distribution phase to a holding phase,”…
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