Large Shiba Inu (SHIB) withdrawals from exchanges signal whale accumulation, tightening liquidity, reducing sell pressure, and increasing volatility risks across markets.
Large investors are reshaping Shiba Inu’s market as massive withdrawals drain exchange liquidity. Since December 5, whales have taken unprecedented SHIB volumes. As a result, analysts observe less selling pressure as long-term holders increase their control.
Whale Withdrawals Reshape SHIB Market Structure
Background data support steady accumulation against short-term speculation. According to TKResearch Trading, net exchange outflows amounted to 80 trillion SHIB. During this time, exchange balances dropped very sharply from 370.3 trillion to 290.3 trillion tokens.
🚨Big Players Control Supply: $SHIB Exchange Liquidity Nearly Locked
📊 $SHIB Supply Breakdown
🔸Circulating Supply: 589.24T $SHIB (Coinmarketcap)
🔸Supply on Exchange: 290.4T $SHIB
⇒ Net Circulating Supply (excluding exchanges): 289T SHIBDiscover more below 👇 pic.twitter.com/kTtAnDjOmI
— TKResearch Trading (@TKR_Trading) January 12, 2026
Moreover, wallet-level analysis identifies the degree of concentration of activities from newly created addresses. In the last 60 days, fresh wallets took out about 82 trillion SHIB coins. Most tokens have left major exchanges, such as Coinbase, at prices close to $0.0000085. This amounted to about 28% SHIB then held in exchange.
Related Reading: Federal Reserve Injects Record $74.6 Billion In Year-End Liquidity
As a result, analysts speak of emerging signs of supply exhaustion. With fewer tokens to instant sale, short-term liquidity has weakened significantly. As a result, price reactions to large trades could worsen.
In addition, the withdrawals eliminated almost one week of normal exchange liquidity. This reduced immediate sell-side pressure considerably. Therefore, SHIB managed to dodge more severe losses even as market uncertainty was present.
Currently, the price of Shiba Inu is around $0.0000086 on January 12, 2026. The price was slightly weak during the last 24 hours. Nevertheless, analysts attribute the whale accumulation to keeping a narrow range of consolidation. Without such outflows, deeper corrections seemed probable.
Additionally, taking assets off exchanges can be a long-term positioning move. Typically, whales move tokens around for holding, staking, or decentralized finance. Therefore, current activity implies confidence, and not distribution.
Tight Liquidity Signals Volatility Risks Ahead
Current updates have shown increasing imbalances between supply and potential demand. With fewer SHIB on exchanges, big orders may have a strong impact on prices. Consequently, the risks of volatility in the future are higher if the sentiment changes suddenly.
Industry observers also point to strategic competition between large holders and markets more generally. As whales bundle up supplies, retail traders have thinner order books. Therefore, abrupt buying or selling could cause exaggerated movements in prices.
According to TKResearch Trading, these flows represent deliberate accumulation strategies. Analysts point to similarities to previous phases of accumulation among meme-based assets. However, sustainability relies on sustained growth in demand. Without new buyers, reduced liquidity is not the only guarantee for upward momentum.
Meanwhile, wider market conditions are mixed. Bitcoin consolidation and macro uncertainty still impact altcoin sentiment. For all this, SHIB’s limited supply offers relative insulation.
Further, reduced exchange balances make short-selling strategies more complicated. With a limited borrowable supply, the speculative downside pressure is weakened. Therefore, price stability is improved for a period of time. However, this environment can be reversed in sudden inflows of deposits.
Looking forward, tight liquidity makes upside and downside risks equally huge. Therefore, long-term accumulation and organic demand are a must. Without them, the concentrated holdings may eventually unwind.
Overall, the evolving liquidity structure of SHIB highlights the increasing whale influence. The battle going on between accumulation and demand will be the defining factor on the direction of the price. Market participants are wary but vigilant because the supply dynamics continue to change.
Source: https://www.livebitcoinnews.com/whales-drain-80t-shib-from-exchanges-liquidity-tightens/