Key Insights:
- In the latest Bitcoin news, over 400,000 BTC (worth more than $40 billion) have been sold by long-term holders in the past month
- Spot Bitcoin ETFs bought roughly $4.5 billion over the same period, leaving tens of billions in supply absorbed by unknown buyers
- While Bitcoiners speculate over who is absorbing the excess coins, most analysts believe the rotation of older coins is a sign of a healthy bull-market phase
It was a hectic October for Bitcoin news. One that saw upward surges, harsh corrections, and a flurry of theories about who’s controlling the levers behind the world’s biggest digital asset.
Headlines screamed about the “Red Uptober” and the largest crash in crypto market history, which erased over $19 billion from crypto’s total market capitalization.
Yet, the most revealing story may be unfolding in the details of on-chain supply rotation.
Bitcoin News: $40 Billion Shifts Hands
Recent Bitcoin news revealed that OG Bitcoin holders have sold over 400,000 BTC (worth approximately $40 billion) in the last month, $33 billion in October alone.
Even in “normal” bullish conditions, that’s a historic pace of coins leaving the wallets of long-term holders (LTHs) in such a short time period.
As the BTC price bounced from all-time highs above $126,000 to lows near $104,000, at the time of writing, profit-taking and transfer activity hit levels not seen since early 2024.
And here’s the puzzle: ETF flows offer only a partial answer to how the BTC price has withstood the selling pressure so remarkably well.
Bitcoin ETF Buying: Big, But Not That Big
The US Spot Bitcoin ETFs have been the darlings of 2025, raking in inflows despite a policy-driven October wobble.
According to Bitcoin news market trackers, ETFs added roughly $2.5–$4.5 billion in net inflows during October.
BlackRock’s IBIT and other major funds continued soaking up coins, with IBIT alone at points hauling in over $400 million in a single day.
Yet that still leaves a gaping $30 billion-plus gap between old BTC hitting the market and ETF demand. As analyst Will Clemente questioned:
“Makes you rlly wonder who’s absorbing the other $30b+ of selling from OGs in the low $100k’s.”
Who’s Scooping Up the Rest?
Enter the mystery buyers. If ETFs aren’t the ultimate sink for dumped coins, who is?
There is some anecdotal evidence in the Bitcoin news that points to significant action from over-the-counter (OTC) trading desks.
This is where high-net-worth individuals, crypto funds, and even institutions take advantage of market volatility to accumulate at favorable prices.
Another possibility is the Asian buyers propping up the BTC price. Some on-chain forensics suggest that large buyers in Asia, potentially sovereign wealth interests or regional trading houses, may be stocking up quietly.
Could there also be the possibility of nation-state buyers? While it’s only speculation for now, investors will be watching the Bitcoin news closely.
Whoever is absorbing this massive selling pressure has to be someone with very deep pockets indeed.
What’s even more telling is the market’s ability to absorb such historic selling without a lasting BTC price collapse.
That either highlights impressive new demand or the presence of buyers willing to take the other side at three-digit-thousand valuations.
Are Long-Term Bitcoin Holders Actually Whales?
The phrase “long-term holder” (LTH) is tossed around a lot. But, as on-chain analyst Willy Woo explained, it’s not necessarily synonymous with OG whales losing faith.
On most analytic platforms, “LTH” simply means coins haven’t moved for at least five months. The metric doesn’t care whether the owner is Satoshi or anyone else involved since the early days.
So when on-chain data shows 400,000 Bitcoin shifting from the “LTH supply,” it doesn’t mean a parade of maximalists cashed out at once.
Rather, it likely reflects a natural bull-market process where older coins are sold to newer market entrants or are simply moved in anticipation of volatility.
As Woo put it, “LTH supply dropping is a normal process in a bull market because fresh capital comes in to buy the supply.”
A reduction in the five-month-or-more supply mostly indicates earlier profit-taking or repositioning, not an exodus of conviction.
The Rotation Isn’t Panic; It’s the Market at Work
Even though net institutional flows for Bitcoin have dipped below daily mining supply at times, substantial outside-of-ETF demand has kept the market buoyant.
More tellingly, the so-called “profit-taking” doesn’t seem to signal a local top. Instead, every major LTH distribution over the past 18 months has eventually been absorbed as new capital rotates in.
It’s a classic handover. As old coins find new owners, the next cohort of “long-term holders” is minted in real time. But keep watching the Bitcoin news to see whether demand can keep up with supply.