Crypto whales significantly impact market trends by offloading substantial amounts of Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH). Recent data indicate a continued pattern of these extensive sales, totaling over $148 million in crypto, moved to various exchanges for probable liquidation.

Since last week, Bitcoin has been trying to recover after dipping to $58,500. Attempts to rally were evident; Bitcoin nearly reached $64,000 on Monday. However, increased selling pressure forced prices below $63,000.

Bitcoin ETFs Recorded $129 Million in Inflows While Crypto Whales Sell

On Monday, a prominent crypto whale linked to the wallet address 3G98j transferred 1,800 BTC valued at $114 million to Binance at around $63,333. This move typically signals an intent to cash out, reflecting a common strategy among crypto whales during market volatility.

“The Bitcoin price started declining after the whale unloaded BTC,” Spot On Chain said.

Further analysis highlights a significant shift in trading behavior. From June 19 to 21, the crypto whale withdrew 6,725 BTC, valued at $437 million, from Binance and OKX at an average price of $65,008.

Read more: Bitcoin (BTC) Price Prediction 2024/2025/2030

This marked the crypto whale’s first major BTC accumulation in over 1.5 years. However, as prices declined by over 4.11%, the crypto whale has sent 3,481 BTC back to Binance in the past five days, indicating a bearish sentiment.

Historically, this crypto whale has shown strategic trading acumen, netting about $1 billion from BTC transactions between 2022 and 2024. During the 2022 bear market, he amassed 41,000 BTC at an average of only $19,000. He later capitalized on this by unloading 37,000 BTC at around $46,800 during the bull markets of 2023 and 2024.

Ethereum has also seen similar whale activities. On early Monday, the crypto wallet 0xedo, allegedly associated with Abraxas Capital, deposited 42,000 ETH, worth approximately $34.78 million to Bitfinex. Despite these large transactions, this crypto whale still holds a significant position in ETH, with over $112 million currently spread across lending and farming platforms like Spark, GearBox, and Stargate, securing a profit of $4.53 million.

Meanwhile, there has been a glimmer of hope for Bitcoin investors. Spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded a substantial inflow on Monday, with $129 million entering the market.

This is the highest in the past 16 trading days. The Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund attracted the largest inflow, with $65 million. Moreover, both BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust and Grayscale Bitcoin Trust reported 0 inflows on Monday.

Read more: How To Trade a Bitcoin ETF: A Step-by-Step Approach

This contrast between whale sell-offs and significant ETF inflows illustrates the complex and often contradictory forces shaping the crypto market. Such insights are essential for anticipating market shifts and protecting investments, ensuring stakeholders remain informed and vigilant.

Moreover, Bitcoin bull Tom Lee has predicted that Bitcoin will still hit $150,000 by the end of the year. He believes that after the market absorbs the effect of Mt. Gox sell-offs, Bitcoin can strongly rebound.

“If I was investing in crypto, knowing that one of the biggest overhangs will disappear in July, I think it’s a reason to expect a sharp rebound in the second half. I think 150 is still within,” Lee said.

Solana, the fifth-largest crypto asset by market size and the third-largest proof-of-stake (POS) network, saw its liquid staking ratio rise by 1.76% quarter-over-quarter.

According to DefiLlama, over $54 billion worth of crypto assets are staked across liquid staking platforms. Liquid staking, unlike traditional staking, lets users earn extra yield and retain liquidity with a derivative token for DeFi.

The Rise of Liquid Staking on Solana

Data from Dune Analytics shows over 23 million SOL, valued at over $3.6 billion, staked on liquid staking platforms. Solana has a higher staking ratio than Ethereum, around 60%, but only 6% of staked SOL is in liquid staking. This indicates untapped potential in Solana’s liquid staking sector, as well as potential growth opportunities.

Read more: What Is Liquid Staking in Crypto?

Solana’s two-day unbonding period, shorter than many other blockchains, might also impact the popularity of liquid staking. Konstantin Boyko-Romanovsky, founder and CEO of Allnodes, explains how this can be an advantage over other blockchains like Polkadot or Ethereum.

“Since Solana’s unbonding period is only two days, liquid staking might not be as popular as blockchains with unbonding periods of 2-3 weeks. In the context of staking, the unbonding period is when staked assets are unlocked and available for use after a user decides to unstake them,” Boyko-Romanovsky, told BeInCrypto.

Platforms like Sanctum and Jito Labs are also driving the liquid staking boom on Solana. According to researcher and analyst Tom Wan, Sanctum lowered the barrier of entry and is helping projects build their own liquid staking tokens (LSTs) and scale.

Jito currently has about 91,000 Solana investors staking on the platform, with an APR of over 8% and over 10.6 million SOL staked.

“Sanctum is able to take the torch. The launch of INF, Sanctum Router, and Sanctum Reserve, has lowered the barrier to entry, buklding foundation of a Cambrain explosion of the liquid staking sector on Solana,” Wan shared in a post.

Boyko-Romanosvky also highlights the influence emerging trends like re-staking can have on liquid staking’s growth in Solana.

“Emerging technologies like re-staking can potentially influence the development and adoption of liquid staking on Solana and similar blockchains. By providing continuous liquidity, increasing yield opportunities, and offering greater flexibility, re-staking can enhance the attractiveness of liquid staking even on platforms with short unbonding periods like Solana. However, ensuring the security and reliability of these technologies, alongside effective market and liquidity management, will be crucial for their success and widespread adoption,” Boyko-Romanosvky shared.

Read more: Solana (SOL) Price Prediction 2024/2025/2030

As liquid staking continues to grow in popularity, Solana could benefit from increased user participation and enhanced network security. So far, two major filings for a Solana ETF have been made in the US. If liquid staking popularity continues to grow, it can give Solana a competitive advantage and attract investment firms.