On-chain data reveals a distinct split in crypto whale behavior as February 2026 draws to a close. While some large holders are aggressively accumulating select altcoins in anticipation of March gains, others are stubbornly holding onto significant losing positions in privacy-focused cryptocurrencies.
Whale Accumulation Targets Three Tokens
Data from Santiment indicates that crypto whales are selectively adding exposure to Uniswap (UNI), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), and Chainlink (LINK). For UNI, large holders increased their holdings from 639.06 million to 640 million tokens on February 26 alone, a move worth roughly $1 million at current prices. This accumulation occurred despite UNI's price pulling back sharply from an intraday high of $4.29, after a 15.5% 24-hour gain. UNI is consolidating within a symmetrical triangle pattern, with a confirmed 12-hour close above $4.21 potentially validating a breakout toward $4.88 and $5.95.
Bitcoin Cash whales, specifically wallets holding between 100,000 and 1,000,000 coins, increased their stash from 4.3 million to 4.4 million BCH on February 26—a $50 million move. This aggressive accumulation follows a period of selling and coincides with BCH forming an inverse head-and-shoulders pattern. A break above the $598 neckline could open a path toward $777, though it must first surpass strong resistance at $570.
For Chainlink, whale selling through February 25 reversed on February 26, with large holders adding 370,000 LINK (worth ~$3.5 million). This move followed LINK's confirmed breakout from an inverse head-and-shoulders pattern. The token faces resistance at $9.62, with support at $9.28. The Chaikin Money Flow (CMF) indicator crossed above zero on February 20, signaling institutional money flow preceding the price move.
Privacy Coin Whales Face Massive Losses, Refuse to Sell
In a contrasting narrative, whales holding large leveraged long positions in privacy coins Zcash (ZEC), Monero (XMR), and Dash (DASH) on the Hyperliquid derivatives platform are facing severe unrealized losses, yet are refusing to exit.
The most extreme case is account 0xcf9, which holds a $5.03 million long position in ZEC with 10x leverage. With an average entry price of $574, the unrealized loss has reached $6.68 million—a loss of approximately 294% exceeding the principal. The position's liquidation price is near $142.
Account 0xc17 holds a $3.29 million long in XMR with 3x leverage (avg. cost $384), facing an unrealized loss of ~$350,000 (32%). This account has recently averaged down its positions in both ZEC and XMR.
On the DASH side, account 0xd47 holds a $1.63 million long with 5x leverage (avg. cost $64), resulting in an unrealized loss of $1.34 million, representing a 414% loss. This account previously held the largest short position in ZEC and also incurred significant losses.
