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Posted:
- The total number of Bitcoin holders at the time of writing was 52.53 million.
- Users who have owned BTCs for two to three years made up the lion’s share of Bitcoin’s total realized cap.
Bitcoin [BTC] remained at the $42,000 level for the past 24 trading hours as the countdown to an expected super cycle in the new year kept participants excited.
At the time of writing, the king coin was exchanging hands at $42,641, having made a significant gain of 12.29% in recent months, AMBCrypto discovered using CoinMarketCap facts.
The number of Bitcoin holders is increasing sharply
As expected, the rally, which started in mid-October, has boosted demand for the world’s largest cryptocurrency.
The total number of BTC holders has since increased by 3.6 million, representing a jump of 7.35%, AMBCrypto’s examination of Santiment’s data showed.
This brought the total number of holders to 52.53 million at the time of writing.
Source: Santiment
This user cohort holds the key
As demand for Bitcoin rises, many market analysts turned their attention to the coin’s long-term holders, who have stuck with it through thick and thin.
On-chain research firm CryptoQuant highlighted the specific case of investors who have held BTCs for more than two years but less than three years. This cohort was responsible for approximately 1/3 of the total realized capitalization across all age groups.
Source: CryptoQuant
For the curious, the realized limit, or stored value of the coin, is calculated by adding each coin at the price when it was last moved. In the same way, Realized Limit – UTXO value bands show the distribution of the realized limit of a specified value band.
Returning to the 2- to 3-year cohort, the group’s realized market capitalization has been high throughout history. This essentially meant that most long-term investors held on to their stocks during this period.
In other words, this cohort owns the majority of the wealth stored in Bitcoin. Therefore, aggressive sell-offs from this group could put significant downward pressure on the price of BTC.
Source: CryptoQuant
Read BTC price forecast for 2023-2024
Is there a sale coming up?
However, it was still early to hit the panic button. The Net Unrealized Profit/Loss indicator for the cohort showed a breakeven point, ruling out any immediate liquidation concerns.
Source: CryptoQuant