Chainalysis: Bitcoin's largest holders are diverse

Bitcoin • October 10, 2018, 1:24PM EDT

The blockchain analysis company recently released a report analyzing the 32 largest wallets on the Bitcoin blockchain. These wallets represent approximately one million bitcoins (~$6.5b at time of writing). According to Chainalysis, these wallets represent four basic types of bitcoin whales (individuals or entities that hold large amounts of bitcoin): Traders, Miners/Early Adopters, Lost, Criminals. The share of the one million bitcoins from these whales are as follows:

Traders: 33.1%
Miners/Early Adopters: 33.1%
Lost: 21.2%
Criminals" 12.5%

While most people believe that whales exacerbate volatility, Chainalysis' data shows the opposite. Instead of whales selling during price declines, they were net receivers of bitcoin during bear markets. This shows that, rather than destabilizing the market, bitcoin whales actually stabilize it. (Source: Chainalysis)

About Author

Steven Zheng is a researcher for The Block. He joined The Block in August 2018. Steven graduated from St. John’s University with a degree in economics. Previously, he covered blockchain and crypto at Radicle, a startup analytics firm. He also had brief stints at Cheddar, a media startup, and Bowery Capital, a venture capital firm. He owns bitcoin. Follow Steven on Twitter at: @Dogetoshi