Bitcoin maintained its position at $78,456 on Wednesday, as significant profit-taking by large holders saw $614 million realized in a single day. Despite this selling activity, spot Bitcoin ETFs continued to attract strong interest, registering a net inflow of $314.37 million for the seventh consecutive day. Bitcoin’s ability to stay above key levels highlights a dynamic shift in the market, with institutional demand absorbing much of the supply that whales are selling.
Institutional buying offsets retail selling
The overall cryptocurrency market entered a technical consolidation phase after a sustained rally, with the total market capitalization reaching $2.68 trillion. This period of sideways trading reflects a balance between profit-taking by retail investors and institutional purchasing activity.
Data from SoSoValue showed spot Bitcoin ETFs bringing in daily net inflows of $314.37 million, marking a continued run of positive sentiment from institutional buyers. Spot Ethereum ETFs also posted sizable inflows of $179.80 million, largely driven by BlackRock’s ETHA fund.
U.S. Treasury plans to boost Treasury buybacks to $4 billion per operation, alongside discussions on creating a strategic Bitcoin reserve, have further supported fund inflows. These trends underscore Wall Street’s ongoing role as the main source of demand.
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AAPLTradingView data revealed Bitcoin holding above $78,000 after testing the $80,000 threshold and reaching a local high of $81,304. XRP, on the other hand, fell to $1.41, a 7% decline for the week, as large holders took profits after a 45% price rally.
CryptoQuant’s on-chain indicators flagged short-term overheating in the market. Bitcoin whales realized $614 million in profits within 24 hours, elevating traders’ unrealized profit margin to its highest point since June 2025 at 20.5%.
The simultaneous increase in BTC and XRP flows to exchanges indicates that long-term holders have started moving funds into cash amid rising liquidity.
Bullish sentiment and new forecasts
Despite localized selling pressure, macro-level indicators have shifted in favor of buyers. CryptoQuant’s Bull-Bear market cycle gauge moved into the green Early Bull territory, echoing conditions seen before the start of the rally in January 2023.
The Bull Score improved from 30 to 80 points in a single week, reaching its highest level since October 2025 when Bitcoin was trading around $124,000.
On the back of favorable conditions, Bernstein analysts sharply raised their Bitcoin price forecasts, predicting a rise to $150,000 by mid-2027, with a further peak near $300,000 expected in 2029. These projections factor in growing U.S. sovereign debt and ongoing depreciation of fiat currencies.
According to Bernstein’s optimistic scenario, Bitcoin could reach $200,000 or $500,000 over the coming years and potentially $1 million by 2033. The firm did lower its price target for MicroStrategy shares to $350, citing an accelerated pace of equity issuance, but its overall report points to the start of a new global market cycle.
As part of the technical analysis landscape, tools are evolving to help traders adapt to rapid market moves triggered by major news or regulatory shifts. In a market where a single Fed decision or a sudden altcoin listing can change everything in seconds, traders are minimizing friction and consolidating information. Privacy-focused platforms such as CryptoAppsy now let users track real-time charts, access coin-specific news, manage portfolios, and receive alerts seamlessly—often without the need for registering an account.
Ripple network and RLUSD growth
XRP’s fundamentals continue to offer support amid current whale distributions. Ripple’s regulated RLUSD stablecoin is expanding, driving network activity and helping counterbalance distribution pressure.
RLUSD’s total supply and market capitalization are approaching $2 billion, with approximately $1 billion deployed directly on the XRP Ledger (XRPL). The stablecoin constitutes over 90% of all stablecoin transactions on the network.
While short-term traders are realizing gains in the $1.41 to $1.45 range, growing institutional liquidity on the XRPL suggests that usage-based demand is beginning to outweigh retail performance-driven speculation.
BlackRock and ETF migration
Major funds led by BlackRock are quietly absorbing available Bitcoin supply, with the IBIT fund passing $5 billion in private in-kind transactions. This mechanism enables large investors to move Bitcoin from personal wallets directly onto the ETF’s balance sheet, carrying forward the assets’ original cost basis and thereby avoiding capital gains tax.
BlackRock’s July decision to cut the minimum conversion threshold from $25 million to $1 million triggered a shift across the ETF ecosystem. In response, Bitwise also reduced its own limit, aiming to retain client assets. BlackRock’s head of digital assets attributed the migration not only to tax advantages, but also to heightened security concerns as investors seek regulated custody in the face of increased cyberattacks and physical threats.
The consolidation of assets under institutional funds has impacted on-exchange supply, with Bitcoin holding near $78,456 after challenging local tops, IBIT trading at $44.72, and BlackRock accumulating significant whale positions. Ethereum’s ETHA fund brought in $131.94 million in session inflows, supporting a sharp rebound in ETH’s price to $18.60, while Solana moved above $100 following record high transaction counts.
New U.S. macroeconomic data has contributed to local market volatility. Annual core PCE readings matched forecasts at 3.3%, and GDP growth was steady at 1.5%. However, headline PCE inflation rose to 3.7%, exceeding expectations, and the GDP deflator was recorded at 6.4%. These inflationary pressures are limiting spot purchases ahead of comments expected from Kevin Warsh on Friday, even as the digital asset industry’s structural focus has shifted further toward long-term institutional investment.
The current landscape reflects a transition period as Wall Street funds increase their share of crypto markets, underlying support comes from regulated stablecoins, and cryptocurrency adoption advances amid tightening global liquidity.
