The just-concluded week saw crypto whales make big moves. We break down the largest transactions and their impact on the market. From big Bitcoin sell-offs to big ETH accumulation by institutional wallets and XRP and SOL buying. Each whale move is linked to market action. These moves have pointed towards potential calculated or targeted plays amid ongoing market highs, lows and balances that took place in the week..
Experts of speculate that these moves could be accumulation, redistribution, or exit strategies.
Bitcoin Whale Activity
Bitcoin whales were active, with a massive sell-off. Per the previously reported Satoshi whale era investor, Galaxy Digital has indeed come out to confirm a sell off of 80,000 BTC (about $9 billion) as part of estate planning. Despite the size of this transaction, Bitcoin’s price didn’t crash. It stayed around $118,000 in the days after. But it did spark debate on long term confidence in BTC.
As CoinDesk put it, “one of the largest notional BTC transactions ever” but the impact was minimal.
At the same time, other crypto whales were buying Bitcoin. Arkham reported Anchorage Digital (a major crypto custodian) quietly accumulated 10,141 BTC ($1.19 billion) from multiple wallets in a few hours. In other late-July moves, smaller whales also accumulated: Arkham found several new wallets adding Bitcoin and growing the whale-held supply.
In short, while one early adopter sold $9B worth of BTC, other big holders and institutions kept buying. The net effect was Bitcoin held its ground, through the week.

Ethereum Whale Movements
Ethereum also saw big whale activity that drove the price up. Whale analytics showed huge ETH accumulation in late July. According to on-chain data, whales bought around 220,000 ETH (about $850 million) in 48 hours.
A certain whale received 12,000 ETH ($45 million) from Galaxy Digital, bringing that wallet’s balance to almost 113,000 ETH (about $427M). Then, another whale withdrew 20,000 ETH ($75.6M) from Binance. Withdrawals to private wallets usually mean long term holding.
Recently, Arkham data showed an institutional-size ETH buy. A a new wallet bought $153 million worth of ETH (around 40,000 coins) via Galaxy Digital’s OTC desk. These are signs of growing conviction. To this effect, Ethereum’s price rose hitting above $3,800. As of late July, it trades at 3,876, up over 54% for the month.
Analysts attribute this rally to crypto whale accumulation. With whales buying more ETH and over 1 million ETH moving off exchanges in July, selling pressure was low.
In essence Ethereum whales have been buying into the late July rally, which coincided with ETF inflows and technicals. Analysts believe this could drive $ETH towards $4,000 and beyond.
Altcoin Whale Activity
Whales weren’t limited to Bitcoin and Ethereum. Several altcoins saw heavy crypto whale trades that moved markets. Coinpaper reported that XRP whales recently bought about 310 million tokens (roughly $980M) at discount prices. This lifted total whale-held XRP from 23.55B to 23.86B.
These buy-ins came ahead of a major U.S. crypto policy announcement. The whales’ large accumulation in XRP coincided with a local rally in its price. Big holders were buying XRP, betting on regulatory clarity to boost demand.
A large Solana whale also sold 17,082 SOL (about $3.19M) to swap into Vine Coin (VINE). The whale reportedly acquired 22.4 million VINE tokens. Notably, VINE then spiked 112% the same day.
This move shows how whale trading can trigger altcoin moves. By moving a multi-million-dollar Solana position into a lesser-known token, a single whale helped ignite a short-term rally in that meme coin.
On-chain trackers spotted crypto whales quietly accumulating $PEPE meme coin in late July. Roughly 84 billion PEPE tokens were moved from DEXs into whale wallets. At the same time, two large LINK addresses withdrew around $9 million of LINK back to cold storage. These patterns suggest whales were buying to secure gains.
Binance analysts noted such accumulation often precedes breakouts. Notably, altcoins have enjoyed renewed momentum in late July as Bitcoin traded around $118K.
Overall, big holders have been buying altcoins this week. Whale buys in tokens like XRP, PEPE and LINK have boosted those coins. Meanwhile, altcoin trading volumes have surged as whales moved funds off exchanges to hold.
This week’s crypto whale activities
Crypto | Action | Amount (Approx.) | Value (USD) | Remarks |
Bitcoin (BTC) | Accumulation | 10,141 BTC | $1.19 billion | Quiet accumulation by Anchorage Digital |
XRP | Bought | 310 million XRP | $980 million | Whales scooped up tokens during dip |
Solana (SOL) | Swapped to VINE | 17,082 SOL | $3.19 million | Whale moved SOL to buy 22.4M VINE |
Ethereum (ETH) | Received | 12,000 ETH | $45 million | Whale received from Galaxy Digital |
Ethereum (ETH) | Withdrawn | 20,000 ETH | $75.6 million | Whale withdrew from Binance |
Ethereum (ETH) | Transferred | 19,000 ETH | $72.9 million | Galaxy Digital to unknown wallet |
Ethereum (ETH) | Bought | 40,000 ETH | $153 million | Whale purchased via Galaxy OTC |

Impact on the Crypto Market Rally
These crypto whale movements have fueled the crypto market rally in late July. Despite fears that massive sales would crash prices, key metrics remained positive. After the massive $BTC sale, Bitcoin held above $117K. Ethereum was already up, and whale accumulation pushed it to new highs.
Exchange data confirms the bullish trend, over 1 million ETH left exchanges in July. In equities, strong ETF inflows ($5B into ETH ETFs in 17 days) also coincides with whale buying, making the case for the bull even stronger.
In practical terms, these crypto whale trades mean more buying and less selling in the market. When crypto whales withdraw coins or open large long positions, it’s a sign of confidence. When a large Bitcoin sale is absorbed without a crash, it means there’s strong demand underneath.
As one analyst put it, it’s proof of Bitcoin’s liquidity and strength. Altcoins responded too: XRP and many altcoins rallied as whales stepped in.
Conclusion
According to the latest research, late-July whale activity has buoyed the crypto market rally. Experts believe big investors might be rotating gains and accumulating top coins and select altcoins. This has created momentum which sets up for more upside if the bulls hold.
Traders and investors are advised to keep watching these whale signals for near-term moves.
For in-depth analysis and the latest trends in the crypto space, our team offers expert content regularly.
Summary
Crypto whale activity this week has been driving the market. Whales sold but also bought Bitcoin and Ethereum in record amounts. Whales bought 220,000 ETH ($850M) in 48 hours and pulled $153M of ETH into private wallets. Whales accumulated $980M worth of tokens. Meanwhile, altcoin whales moved billions of PEPE and LINK into cold storage.
FAQs
What is a “crypto whale” and why do whales matter?
A crypto whale is an individual or entity holding a very large amount of a cryptocurrency (often thousands or millions of tokens). Whales can move markets: their trades can create big buying or selling pressure. When whales buy, prices often go up due to increased demand; when they sell large sums, prices can drop.
How do whale transactions affect prices in the short term?
Big whale trades can create short term volatility. For example, if a whale sells millions of dollars of Bitcoin, sellers may panic and prices may drop. Conversely, when whales withdraw coins from exchanges (signaling holding), it often precedes a rally by removing sell side supply.
Why did Ethereum’s price go up this month?
Partly due to whale accumulation. Big holders added hundreds of millions in ETH. This reduced exchange supply and coincided with huge ETF inflows. Many traders see this as a sign the bulls are in control of ETH.
Glossary
OTC (Over-the-Counter): A way to trade large volumes of crypto privately, outside public exchanges. Institutions use OTC desks (like Galaxy Digital) for big buys/sells to avoid slippage.
On-chain Analytics: Tools or services (e.g. Arkham, Lookonchain, WhaleAlert) that scan blockchain transactions.
Exchange Outflow: When coins move off a cryptocurrency exchange (to private wallets).
Altcoin: Any cryptocurrency other than Bitcoin. Examples include Ethereum, Solana, XRP, etc.