Santiment reports that roughly 403.000 BTC have left centralized exchanges since late 2024, equivalent to about 2.09% of Bitcoin’s total supply. The 400K Bitcoin peeled off exchanges trend reflects a shift toward self‑custody and institutional cold storage and immediately tightens the pool of Bitcoin available for trading.
Market intelligence identifies two parallel flows removing liquidity from exchanges. U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs have accumulated about 1.5 million BTC, while public companies and other institutional treasuries now hold more than 1 million BTC. Together, these institutional holders control roughly 11% of the 21 million supply, placing significant amounts into long‑term custody and away from active trading.
This reallocation reduces circulating inventory on venues where trades execute, and the result is an emergent supply squeeze: less readily available Bitcoin to satisfy spot orders and block trades. The phenomenon reinforces a long‑term custody preference summed up by the crypto adage “not your keys, not your coins,” which captures investors’ heightened focus on control and counterparty risk.
ETF flows, market liquidity, and on‑chain behaviour
The institutional route is not uniformly one‑way. Spot ETF vehicles have at times recorded sizable redemptions, creating a paradox where underlying accumulation coexists with cash outflows from fund wrappers. Recent figures include a one‑day ETF outflow of $1 billion, weekly outflows near $1.208 billion, and monthly net exits of about $3.7 billion; a single‑day outflow of $523 million hit a major ETF managed by BlackRock.
These dynamics suggest tactical rebalancing, profit‑taking, or shifts between fund structures rather than a wholesale loss of conviction. For market participants, the practical consequence is that ETFs serve as a critical liquidity conduit even while they intermittently disgorge capital, and for large buyers, sourcing meaningful amounts of BTC without moving the market has become costlier, widening execution spreads and increasing slippage risk.
On‑chain metrics point to accumulation rather than capitulation. The Market Value to Realized Value (MVRV) ratio signals an ongoing accumulation phase. Large holders have added materially to positions: addresses classified as whales increased holdings by about 83.105 BTC, and transfers above 100 BTC have surged in frequency. This behaviour indicates strategic accumulation from sizable actors and supports the view that a significant portion of removed exchange supply is being parked in cold storage rather than immediately sold.
The removal of roughly 403.000 BTC from exchanges marks a structural tightening of spot liquidity driven by self‑custody and institutional custody solutions. That tightening elevates execution costs for large trades and accentuates price sensitivity to new demand.
