- Bitcoin investors have pulled tokens from centralized exchanges at a record rate since the collapse of FTX, says Glassnode.
- The blockchain analytics firm said bitcoin outflows to self-custody hit a rate of 106,000 bitcoin per month.
- “The failure of FTX has created a very distinct change in #Bitcoin holder behaviour across all cohorts.”
Bitcoin investors have pulled their coins from centralized exchanges at a historical rate with the implosion of crypto exchange FTX, according to blockchain analytics firm Glassnode.
The withdrawal of coins to self-custody wallets hit a rate of 106,000 bitcoin per month, Glassnode said in a Twitter post Sunday.
The rate was similar to withdrawal patterns logged in April 2020, November 2020, and June and July of this year.
“This has resulted in positive balance changes across all wallet cohorts, from shrimp to whales,” Glassnode said, referring to the range of crypto holders. “The failure of FTX has created a very distinct change in #Bitcoin holder behaviour across all cohorts.”
The moves suggest crypto investors are reconsidering how to manage their digital assets now that the once third-largest crypto exchange in the world has faltered and the value of the fortune built up by FTX’s founder Sam Bankman-Fried now been wiped to $1.
Whales representing wallet addresses that hold more than 1,000 bitcoin had received at least 3,600 bitcoin since November 6 and so-called shrimps holding less 1 bitcoin saw wallets taking in 33,700 bitcoins, said Glassnode.
It was on November 6 that Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao told his 7.6 million followers on Twitter that his crypto exchange Binance was liquidating any remaining holdings of, FTT, FTX’s native token, on its books “due to recent revelations that have came to light.”
Earlier this month, CoinDesk reported Alameda Research, FTX’s trading arm, relied heavily on illiquid cryptocurrencies the company carried on its balance sheet. Binance later walked away from a bailout for FTX. FTX on Friday filed for bankruptcy protection after the company failed to plug a shortfall of up to $8 billion in a liquidity crunch.
“Self custody is a fundamental human right … Just make sure you do do it right,” Zhao wrote Sunday on Twitter, urging crypto investors themselves to oversee custody of their digital assets. The price of TWT, the token for Binance self-custody crypto wallet called Trust Wallet, soared after Zhao’s tweet.
Trust Wallet Token was up 14% during Monday’s trading session and bitcoin was up 0.3% at $16,299.
