The recent surge in the price of Bitcoin (BTC) has led to an increase in the number of new daily “millionaire” wallets, reaching approximately 1,500. However, this number is still significantly lower than the number of new millionaires created during the previous bull run.
According to a report from Kaiko Research on March 11, the number of new daily Bitcoin wallets worth one million dollars or more was less than 500 in January, but it has now risen to around 2,000.
During the last bull run, which saw Bitcoin reach its previous all-time high of $69,000 on November 10, 2021, more than 4,000 wallets became million-dollar wallets on a daily basis, with an additional 2,000 wallets reaching the $10 million mark.
Despite the recent price surge, Kaiko noted that on-chain Bitcoin whales are experiencing a slow return. In fact, the current number of new daily Bitcoin millionaires is similar to the figures seen in July 2022 when Bitcoin dropped below $20,000.
Kaiko attributed this slow return to new capital not being fully deployed and large whales potentially taking profits as Bitcoin reached new highs. Additionally, more whales may be storing their holdings with custodians rather than personal wallets.
The launch of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) may have played a role in this trend. Since the launch of nine new US-based spot Bitcoin ETFs in January, these ETFs have accumulated more than $28 billion worth of Bitcoin. Coinbase and BitGo are the main custodians of these ETFs.
It’s important to note that investors in spot Bitcoin ETFs hold shares in the ETFs rather than holding Bitcoin directly. Therefore, their indirect Bitcoin holdings would not be reflected in the data on whale wallets.
In 2022, the number of Bitcoin millionaire wallets increased by nearly 300% to 90,000, according to Glassnode. The year 2023 saw a significant increase in the price of Bitcoin, rising by about 160% to $42,200. Since then, Bitcoin has experienced a further 71% increase and is currently priced at $72,200.
Overall, the recent rally in Bitcoin’s price has led to an increase in the number of new daily millionaire wallets, although it is still lower than the numbers seen during the previous bull run. The slow return of Bitcoin whales may be due to new capital not being fully deployed and the possibility of large whales taking profits at new highs. The launch of spot Bitcoin ETFs may have also influenced this trend.