Wallets holding between 100 and 1,000 BTC have accumulated 113,950 Bitcoin since July 15, increasing their combined holdings by 2.22% to 5.24 million BTC, according to Santiment. The buying trend comes as Bitcoin briefly reached $87,000 earlier this week before pulling back and settling around $84,000.
The key question is whether this sustained accumulation is creating a foundation for another breakout or whether the recent rebound is mainly driven by short covering and could lose momentum once leveraged positions unwind.
Some market participants remain cautious about interpreting the move as a clear shift toward greater risk appetite. Trace Finance co-founder Bernardo Brites said the rapid recovery was partly fueled by a short squeeze, leaving uncertainty over the source of the fresh capital entering the market.
That distinction is important when assessing the current resistance levels. The setup may not be purely technical and could also reflect broader macro positioning.
Santiment has monitored the 100-to-1,000-BTC wallet group for five years, with its activity often tracking broader market trends. Strong accumulation periods have frequently occurred ahead of or alongside significant price advances. The latest figures show these wallets continued adding Bitcoin during the recovery, suggesting the rally is receiving support beyond retail investors.
What Bitcoin Needs to Break the $88,000-$90,000 Resistance
The technical backdrop remains relatively clear beneath the whale and ETF data. Bitcoin reclaimed its 365-day moving average near $80,500, a level it had not moved back above since March 2023. The previous recovery through that level was followed by a much larger advance. Bitcoin also moved through the $76,000-$81,000 supply zone that had restricted price gains for several weeks.
The $88,000-$90,000 region is significant because of the amount of Bitcoin supply concentrated around those prices rather than simply because the levels are round numbers. With substantial holdings accumulated in that range, selling pressure could increase as Bitcoin approaches it, making $90,000 an important test for the current rally.
The next moves in ETF flows and stablecoin liquidity could provide a clearer indication of the rally’s strength. Continued ETF inflows combined with expanding stablecoin supply could provide additional support as Bitcoin approaches resistance. Conversely, weaker ETF demand while Bitcoin remains below $88,000 could leave the market more exposed to a pullback as leveraged positions are reduced.
CryptoQuant founder Ki Young Ju has separately suggested that the current cycle could produce a 3-to-5x increase rather than the 10x surges seen during previous cycles. He has pointed to a more mature market and increasing institutional participation as factors that could limit extreme volatility.
That outlook does not determine whether Bitcoin will move above $90,000. Instead, it provides a broader framework for assessing the scale of the current cycle while the market works through the immediate resistance zone.
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