The amount of bitcoin held on exchanges hits its lowest mark since 2018 this year, research statistics by Glassnode reveals. However, this is not the case for the whole cryptocurrency market, as there have been plenty of altcoins held on exchanges since the turn of the year. Bitcoin, however, seems to be taking a different turn.
Reportedly, there had always been an increase in the total of bitcoin held in exchanges since January 2018 up until February 2020 when a 21.66% drop was recorded. Initially, the fall was envisaged to be short-lived, but, some months after, the situation doesn't seem to be improving.
There are no confirmed reasons as to the cause of the drop, though various analysts have made speculations and suggested possible reasons. Studies indicate that recent unpleasant activities like the KUcoin hack, a technical glitch which prevented withdrawal at Okex, may have induced fear and a feeling of insecurity among owners of bitcoin. Thus the decision to keep-off exchanges.
Some other analyst, however, thinks that recent investors of bitcoin, are holding the cryptocurrency in the long-term. This, of course, implies that they would want to stay away from exchanges to drive demand and potentially increase their profit margin.
Glassnode shares in this belief, they hold that long-term investors who are profiting from the long-holds would not cause a bearish turn in the market.
They further point that the current trend will lead to a decrease in the total supply of BTC held by long-term holders as they would sell for profits just before the market gets to its peak. Consequently, new retail investors will emerge.
It is contemplated that with the recent trends, there just might be further increase in the value and price of bitcoin before the market peaks.
