Bitcoin whale and shark wallets have expanded their combined holdings by 41,025 BTC over a ten-day period, reaching a six-week high, according to on-chain data from Santiment. The group, defined as addresses holding between 10 and 10,000 BTC, now controls approximately 13.64 million BTC, equal to 67.93% of the circulating supply.
The accumulation, reported on September 30, 2026, averages about 4,102.5 BTC per day and represents roughly 0.30% growth against the cohort's prior estimated holdings. Santiment noted that the increase marks a recovery toward levels last seen during a mid-August rally, following declines through parts of August and September.
Retail behavior remains a missing piece of the bullish setup. Santiment said the strongest historical signal would combine whale accumulation with declining balances among the smallest addresses, indicating that less-exposed traders may be exiting near buying opportunities. In this case, however, addresses holding less than 0.01 BTC have stayed mostly flat, leaving the more encouraging divergence incomplete.
Large-wallet balance increases do not guarantee price gains. Transfers and movements across holding thresholds can affect reported totals, meaning not every additional coin necessarily represents an exchange purchase. Still, Santiment views the direction of whale and shark balances as relevant because reductions in this group have historically been associated with increased market pressure.
Separately, Whale Alert flagged a notable transaction of 866 BTC sent from Kraken to an unknown wallet, valued at approximately $72.1 million. Exchange outflows of this type are often interpreted by traders as a sign of institutional interest or long-term accumulation, though the destination being unidentified also leaves room for speculation about future sell-offs or repositioning.
Together, the whale accumulation trend and the large Kraken outflow are being monitored for potential effects on Bitcoin liquidity, trading volume, and short-term volatility.
