A crypto whale is an individual or entity that holds a large number of tokens in their wallet, often worth millions of dollars.
The term whale was introduced to cryptocurrencies from financial markets and gambling. In finance, a whale is a person or company with substantial power over the market, while in gambling, it is a large player.
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Whales in Crypto
The adoption of the term whale to cryptocurrencies emerged in the early days of Bitcoin, around 2010. It was first mentioned in social communities like Reddit and forums (BitcoinTalk).
A whale is a large creature that can create ripples when it swims in the ocean. When a crypto whale enters the scene, it can trigger significant price movements due to its large number of cryptocurrencies, affecting the ‘small fish’ (other traders). The impact is more apparent in cryptocurrencies with a smaller market cap.
While no amount labels an address as a crypto whale, in Bitcoin, It has been speculated that the minimum amount of BTC an address must hold to be considered a whale is 1,000 BTC. In 2024, the average whale held around 2,400 BTC.
Why do crypto whales matter?
Automated tools closely monitor the activity of crypto whales. When a whale begins accumulating a cryptocurrency, it is often interpreted as a sign of confidence that may lead to a price appreciation of the purchased crypto.
When a whale transfers a large amount of cryptocurrencies to an exchange (Coinbase Prime, for example), it is a warning signal that the tokens could be sold, which could trigger a sell-off in the cryptocurrency.
How crypto whales affect low-volume cryptocurrencies?
Low-volume cryptocurrencies are highly affected by crypto whales. When a large buy order is placed in a low-volume cryptocurrency, it triggers speculations on imminent news such as a new listing, breakthrough, or a partnership.
These speculations may attract more buyers, which then transform into a rally as more individuals rush to buy. Such ‘buying sprees’ are often seen in meme coins.
Tracking crypto whales
There are many free websites where whales’ activity is tracked. One of the top X accounts is Lookonchain. The activity is clearly explained with on-chain data to support the transactions.
For example, ‘A whale deposited 2.6M $USDC to Hyperliquid and is buying $HYPE, currently holds 343,264 $HYPE ($6M).’
X post from Lookonchain
Lookonchain is a great source for tracking when large buy and sell transactions occur.
To find out when a whale is sending large sums to crypto exchanges or from crypto exchanges to their wallets, Whale Alert on X is a popular way to do this.
Followed by over 2M accounts, only large amounts are tracked and posted.
As noted earlier, when large amounts are transferred to exchanges, many see it as a warning signal for imminent liquidation. When cryptocurrencies are bought on exchanges and transferred out of the exchange, some see it as a positive sign for the cryptocurrency.
Tracking high-profile crypto whales
Transactions that are executed in Ethereum, Bitcoin, and many other chains are transparent. Blockchain analytics firms were able to identify some high-profile crypto whales and track their blockchain activity.
Seeing what coins these whales accumulate or sell is closely monitored. One of these high-profile whales is Justin Sun, the Founder of TRON. Arkham Intelligence monitors his crypto transactions.
Other key players in the crypto industry are monitored through Arakham Intelligence and many other platforms. When a new cryptocurrency is added to the portfolio, the market tends to react the most.
Crypto whales and governance
Many crypto projects hold votes on future protocol developments. In many PoS tokens, those who stake the most have a higher voting weight.
As a result, whales can control the project’s future. Theoretically speaking, if a whale controls most of the voting power, it can negatively influence the project’s future. While mass accumulation can be a positive signal, over-accumulating to the point where one entity dominates the votes can have unpredictable consequences.
To summarize, crypto whales’ addresses are often worth millions of dollars. Their decisions to buy or sell cryptocurrencies are being tracked and can lead to strong price movements in the tokens they are buying or selling.
If a new token has just launched and is picked up by whales, it may be perceived as a bullish (positive) signal.
