Whales and Retail Halt Bitcoin Inflows Ahead of Next Move

• Binance Bitcoin inflows from whales and retail investors drop to their lowest level since the start of the current cycle.
• Derivatives volume rises sharply while Bitcoin holders maintain high conviction and choose not to sell.

Something quite rare is happening on Binance. According to on-chain analyst Darkfost from CryptoQuant, both large investors (whales) and retail investors are now showing very similar behavior—they have stopped sending Bitcoin to the exchange.

BTC inflows from both groups are recorded at their lowest point since the beginning of the current market cycle. And while retail and whales usually tend to go in different directions, now they are in unison.

Bitcoin Whales and Retail Stay Still at a Key Moment

The analyst said that this situation reflects one important thing: the majority of market players choose to hold, not sell. In a world dominated by profit-taking and seasonal panic, this is no small thing. The commitment to hold assets, especially when macroeconomic uncertainty has not completely subsided, indicates a fairly high level of confidence in Bitcoin’s future.

Even more interestingly, throughout this cycle, there have only been two moments when whales and retail have moved simultaneously—and both occurred right at the peak of the market. Back then, inflows to Binance surged simultaneously from both camps. Now? Quite the opposite. BTC inflows to Binance have completely receded, like the shore before a big tidal wave.

Derivatives Volume Rises Sharply, But Spot Investors Still Wait and See

On the other hand, the latest data from CoinGlass actually shows a big spike in the Bitcoin derivatives market. In the last 24 hours alone, BTC derivatives trading volume rose 27.74% to $58.49 billion. It may sound like a normal number for those who have been in crypto for a long time, but in the context of quiet inflows on Binance, this spike raises many questions.

Open interest—the number of derivative contracts that are still active—also rose 4.11% to $72.15 billion. This increase indicates that new money is entering the derivatives market. It could be for speculation, or it could be as a hedge. But clearly, there are many who are taking positions.

Not only that, Bitcoin options volume exploded 64.22% to reach $1.95 billion. This means that traders are preparing for a big move in the near future. However, even though derivatives activity has increased sharply, there does not seem to be a strong push to sell BTC that is already held—either by retail or whales. They remain in place, as if waiting for a definite signal that has not yet come.

Meanwhile, CNF previously highlighted that Binance currently holds more than 60,000 BTC in unrealized profit positions. This condition reflects the level of user trust in the platform is still maintained. The last few weeks have been dominated by outflows, but the presence of new inflows suggests the possibility that traders will be active again in the near future.

As of the writing time, BTC is changing hands at about $107,122, up 1.68% over the last 24 hours and 3.63% over the last 30 days.

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