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09/09/25
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Bitcoin Long-Term Holders Tighten Their Grip Despite $6.4B Capital Decline
Over the past year, long-term Bitcoin holders aged between five and seven years have experienced a notable decline in their realized capital, totaling approximately $6.4 billion. Despite this decrease, the data does not necessarily indicate widespread selling activity among this cohort.
On-chain analysis indicates shifts within specific investor segments categorized by coin age. The “Realized Cap” metric — representing the total capital invested in particular groups of holdings — serves as an important measure of investor activity. Unlike total market valuation, this metric focuses on the movement of capital within defined investor cohorts, offering insights into their behavior.
The segment composed of coins aged five to seven years has seen the most substantial reduction in realized capital, decreasing from roughly $14.9 billion to about $8.5 billion — a decline of approximately 43%. This decline suggests extensive activity among these holders, either through the liquidation of assets or the movement of coins into different age categories. When these holders transact, the age of their coins resets, effectively removing them from the original cohort and contributing to the observed decline.
However, increases in the realized capital of older cohorts, specifically those with holdings over seven years and beyond ten years, indicate that some long-term investors are not actively selling. Instead, their assets appear to have matured into newer age brackets without being liquidated. This passage of coins into higher age groups suggests a phenomenon known as upward promotion, where coins age further rather than being sold.
While the overall trend points towards increased holding duration, there is evidence of selective profit-taking. Data shows that the five to seven-year-old cohort has realized around 385,000 BTC in profits over the year. This appetite for partial profit realization indicates a nuanced behavioral pattern where some holders are actively distributing portions of their holdings, even amidst a broader trend of accumulation among long-term investors.
Currently, Bitcoin trades around $112,400, having gained approximately 3% over the past week, reflecting ongoing market resilience amidst these on-chain dynamics.
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