Bitcoin (BTC) whales appear to be selling to institutions as the supply squeeze tightens below $20,000.

Data from various sources shows that while more than BTC returned to exchanges this calendar week, large-scale buyers are notwithstanding creating more need than supply tin can meet.

Exchange inflows and Grayscale purchase-ins

Statistics from on-chain analytics service Coin98 confirmed that investment giant Grayscale bought twice as much Bitcoin as miners could create in November.

Grayscale Bitcoin buys versus flow in November 2020. Source: Coin98/ Twitter

Together with Foursquare and PayPal, the other major corporate actors requiring more and more BTC stocks, Grayscale is creating a supply imbalance to which price gains are the only logical consequence.

This scenario gear up the stage for December with Grayscale continuing its buying of Bitcoin, totaling over 7,000 BTC in just 24 hours as its Bitcoin Assets Under Management now exceed 10.5 billion as of December. 4.

Grayscale Bitcoin buys six-calendar month chart. Source: Bybt

Simultaneously, this calendar week saw Bitcoin suspension best highs and challenge $20,000, only to run across massive selling pressure.

Having bounced off lows of $eighteen,100 and returned to circle $xix,000, BTC/USD looks primed for another examination of the seminal level, merely selling dynamics remain unusual. With sell walls at $20,000 nevertheless firmly in identify, longtime hodlers and whales looking to go out accept reliable buyers in the form of Grayscale and other institutions.

Bitcoin sell walls versus BTC/USD on Dec. 4. Source: TensorCharts

Testify points to increasing inflows from whales to exchanges this calendar week, something which coincided with the $20,000 endeavor. Should selling already be keeping prices down, BTC should thus exist finding its way from whales to the stronger hands of Grayscale and its clients.

Bitcoin exchange holdings three-twelvemonth chart. Source: CryptoQuant

CNBC: The wealthy are "loading up" on Bitcoin

The phenomenon has fifty-fifty caught the attention of mainstream media.

"Total accounts buying more than $one million worth of Bitcoin and then moving information technology off of exchange has skyrocketed," CNBC reported on Thursday.

"That's up 180% from 2017 to this yr. Analysts say that signals wealthy investors are loading up on Bitcoin and and then storing information technology offline to store somewhere a little more secure."
Bitcoin addresses in profit historical nautical chart. Source: Glassnode/Twitter

At the same time, total Bitcoin addresses in profit versus when coins were placed in them hit new record highs on Friday, according to the latest data from Glassnode.

On Wall Street, meanwhile, news on Thursday came that Bitcoin and hundreds of altcoins would compose new cryptocurrency indexes by S&P Dow Jones Indices from January 2021.