Bitcoin’s most committed long-term investors continue to pare back their holdings, and the impact is becoming increasingly visible in the market.
More than two months after reaching a record high above $126,000, the cryptocurrency has slid nearly 30% and is struggling to establish a firm base. A key factor behind the weakness is persistent selling by long-time holders. Recent blockchain data shows coins that had been held for years are being sold at one of the fastest paces in recent history, just as market demand to absorb that supply is waning.
According to K33 Research, the amount of Bitcoin that had remained untouched for at least two years has fallen by around 1.6 million coins since early 2023 — equivalent to roughly $140 billion — pointing to sustained distribution by veteran investors.
In 2025 alone, nearly $300 billion worth of Bitcoin that had been dormant for more than a year has returned to circulation. CryptoQuant noted that the past 30 days marked one of the largest long-term holder selloffs in over five years.
Previously, much of this supply was absorbed by strong inflows into newly launched exchange-traded funds and crypto-focused investment vehicles. That support has since faded. ETF flows have turned negative, derivatives trading volumes have declined, and retail participation has thinned, leaving the market with fewer buyers to offset continued selling pressure.
The strain intensified after Oct. 10, when $19 billion in liquidations followed unexpected remarks by U.S. President Donald Trump on punitive tariffs, triggering the largest single-day leverage unwind in crypto history. Since then, traders have largely stepped back from derivatives markets, with little sign of renewed risk appetite.
Bitcoin briefly rebounded to $90,000 on Wednesday, a move traders attributed to short-position liquidations, but the rally was short-lived. Prices soon retreated toward the lower end of the post-October trading range, falling as much as 2.8% to $85,278. The token was last trading just above $86,000 as of 10 a.m. in Singapore on Thursday.
