Bitcoin Supply Distribution – From Shrimps to Whales and Other Sea Creatures

As the first and largest cryptocurrency by market cap, Bitcoin remains one of the hottest topics of discussion in the crypto sphere, with most of the conversations revolving around changes and predictions on the Bitcoin price. However, there are other aspects worthy of consideration when analyzing Bitcoin’s evolution and the impact it has on the market, and supply distribution seems to be a very important metric to focus on.

According to a recent study conducted by analytics tool Glassnode, there have been notable shifts in Bitcoin ownership over the past couple of years, so let’s take a closer look at these changes.

The sea creatures populating the Bitcoin waters

The ever-growing community of crypto enthusiasts has developed its own lingo in time. Therefore, Bitcoin holders have come to bear sea-themed designations according to how many coins they have in their wallets, leading to the following classification:

• Plankton – under 0.1 Bitcoin
• Shrimps: 0.1 to 1 BTC
• Crabs: 1 to 10 BTC
• Octopus: 10 to 50 BTC
• Fish: 50 to 100 BTC
• Dolphin: 100 to 500 BTC
• Shark: 500 to 1000 BTC
• Whale: 1000 to 5000 BTC
• Humpback: over 5000 BTC

Shrimps are thriving

Although shrimps collectively own only 6.6% of the total circulating supply at the moment, this marks a rise of 1.6% since 2021, amounting to an all-time high of approximately 1.26 million coins. Their share has been increasing at an unprecedented rate recently, with the average monthly addition to the total shrimp holdings revolving around 26,000 BTC.

It’s pretty obvious that the accumulation balance is slowly tilting in favor of smaller traders and investors lately. The surge in the BTC supply held by shrimps can be a sign that the people’s trust and confidence in Bitcoin is increasing and that widespread crypto adoption is growing.

A new milestone for Bitcoin crabs

Glassnode data reveals that the number of addresses holding one whole Bitcoin or more, commonly referred to as crabs, has also increased significantly, reaching a new milestone of 1 million. At the moment, crabs account for 10.5% of the entire BTC supply, equivalent to 2.03 million BTC – up by 1.5% from just one year ago.

The expansion of the crab cohort was not deterred by events such as the collapse of the crypto exchange FTX or the sharp drop in Bitcoin price that followed afterwards. This goes to show that wealthy investors were largely unbothered by the crypto winter as they continued to increase their holdings.

Whales are losing ground

Apart from their massive holdings, crypto whales are known for their resilience and steadiness which have served as a pillar of strength for Bitcoin over the years. They are also generally viewed as a force to be reckoned with due to the concentration of wealth, which means that any move they make is bound to reverberate across the entire market.

But these days crypto whales don’t seem as daunting anymore. They may not be on the brink of extinction but Glassnode figures show clearly that their dominance has been declining steadily over time. By the latest count, whales hold only 2. 69 million BTC or 14% of the total supply, down by 4.4% since 2021.

Final thoughts

Looking at the latest figures, it becomes clear that the circulating Bitcoin supply is a lot less concentrated than it used to be a few years back as the trends towards a more distributed ownership continues. While there are different interpretations of this phenomenon, the fact that investors’ interest in Bitcoin persists as more individuals are becoming wholecoiners, gives hope that Bitcoin will one day reach mainstream acceptance.