Institutions are buying Bitcoin like it’s late 2020
The amount of Bitcoin available on derivatives exchanges hits its lowest since May 11 - before the China miner rout took hold. Bitcoin (BTC) reserves on derivatives exchanges have dropped to levels last seen before the May price crash.
Data from on-chain analytics service CryptoQuant confirmed that as of Tuesday, derivatives reserves totaled 1.256 million BTC — the least since May 11.
Institutions repeat Q4 2020
Against a backdrop of institutional interest returning to cryptocurrency instruments such as the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC), figures show that major players have in fact been adding to their BTC holdings throughout the downturn. “Big money has been buying,” analyst William Clemente III commented this week.
Exchange balances prove the point, with derivatives platforms seeing a repeat of the trend last witnessed at the end of 2020. Even during the most intense phase of the BTC bull run this year, derivatives balances conversely grew — a decreasing balance characterized only the very beginning of the run to $64,500.
“Since May 19th, entities with 10K-100K BTC have added +269,450 to their holdings ($12.1B),” Clemente III added, highlighting further data. “These entities have between $450M–$4.5B of their capital allocated to Bitcoin.”
Accumulation in action
Institutions have not been put off by any overriding narrative from within or beyond cryptocurrency, including China’s miner rout since May, or the ongoing saga over the United States’ infrastructure bill. Related: One Bitcoin now buys 0.6 kilograms of gold as 10-year returns turn negative
As Cointelegraph previously reported, retail exchange balances have already been heading lower for some time. As of Tuesday, the total exchange balance figure stood at 2.44 million BTC, also a three-month low.
Top Cryptocurrencies with Price Predictions
| # | Crypto | Prediction | Accuracy | CVIX | Price | 24h | 7d | Market Cap | 7d price change | |
| 1 |  BTC |
Bitcoin predictions | 82.8% | 24 | $63 799.64 | -1.25% | -0.48% | $1 256 256 868 803 |  |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 |  ETH |
Ethereum predictions | 74.4% | 43 | $3 130.40 | -0.92% | 1.84% | $382 063 311 928 |  |
|
| 3 |  USDT |
Tether predictions | 95.2% | 1 | $0.999678 | -0.04% | -0.08% | $110 390 164 219 |  |
|
| 4 |  BNB |
Binance Coin predictions | 87.6% | 20 | $598.25 | -2.45% | 7.36% | $88 294 250 261 |  |
|
| 5 |  SOL |
Solana predictions | 70% | 67 | $138.94 | -4.39% | -3.56% | $62 127 976 008 |  |
|
| 6 |  USDC |
USD Coin predictions | 95.6% | 2 | $0.999974 | -0.01% | -0.01% | $33 388 661 015 |  |
|
| 7 |  XRP |
XRP predictions | 66% | 65 | $0.523816 | -0.49% | 3.37% | $28 933 441 089 |  |
|
| 8 |  DOGE |
Dogecoin predictions | 66.8% | 67 | $0.147236 | -2.97% | -5.35% | $21 209 179 148 |  |
|
| 9 |  TON |
Toncoin predictions | 70.8% | 61 | $5.31 | -2.61% | -12.64% | $18 427 726 107 |  |
|
| 10 |  ADA |
Cardano predictions | 63.6% | 76 | $0.462249 | -2.17% | -2.19% | $16 471 737 773 |  |
|
| 11 |  SHIB |
SHIBA INU predictions | 62.4% | 79 | $0.000025 | -2.76% | 9.70% | $14 825 206 315 |  |
|
| 12 |  AVAX |
Avalanche predictions | 65.2% | 75 | $34.33 | -3.52% | -2.00% | $12 983 237 124 |  |
|
| 13 |  TRX |
TRON predictions | 86.4% | 21 | $0.119971 | 2.46% | 8.61% | $10 505 082 170 |  |
|
| 14 |  WTRX |
Wrapped TRON predictions | 86.4% | 18 | $0.119886 | 2.37% | 8.57% | $10 497 587 617 |  |
|
| 15 |  STETH |
Lido stETH predictions | 95.6% | 1 | $2 941.39 | -0.40% | -3.32% | $10 258 752 564 |  |
