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What are Bitcoin “Sharks”?
In Bitcoin terminology, sharks refer to market makers, such as high-net-worth individuals, trading desks, or institutions, that hold anywhere between 100 BTC and 1,000 BTC. They are mid-level investors, just below “whales,” but large enough to influence market sentiment and price movements through their on-chain activity.
According to statistics from major analytics website Glassnode, sharks are sharply increasing their BTC purchases around the current spot levels.
Based on this graph, the total BTC holdings of these mid-level players have increased from 3.52 million BTC to 3.57 million BTC, representing an increase of 54,000 BTC ($4.7 billion) in the last 7 days alone. The sudden spike is evident on the graph, indicating the confidence these investors have in the premier digital asset despite the rising odds of a pending downturn.
Sharks Buying, Whales Selling
While sharks were busy buying the dip, big players, aka whales, dumped a large amount of BTC in the market, which resulted in the current bearish setup. Here is the net change in their fortunes over the last 4-5 years:



 The graph indicates that both small whales (10k-100k BTC) and large whales (>100k BTC) have engaged in significant selling activity over the last two months, resulting in the current bearish setup.
The trend for the smaller whales is even more interesting, as they have spent a large part of the 2025 calendar year dumping huge amounts of BTC in the open market. Even amid their negative actions, the price has seen ups and downs over the last 12 months, showcasing resilience amid massive selling pressure. The larger whales have only started selling since October, directly affecting the markets.
It remains to be seen how these market players will act in the near future, but expect Bitcoin to stay under pressure if this kind of selling persists.
