Bitcoin whale accumulation trend mirrors 2020-era bullish activity after BTC price bounces off $81K

Bitcoin (BTC) price dipped below its ascending channel pattern over the weekend, dropping to $81,222 on March 31. The top cryptocurrency is set to register its worst quarterly return since 2018, but a group of whale entities are mirroring a 2020-era bull run signal.

Bitcoin 1-day chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

In a recent quick take post, onchain analyst Mignolet explained that “market-leading” whale addresses holding between 1,000 to 10,000 BTC exhibited a high correlation with Bitcoin price. The analyst said that these entities are resilient to market volatility and show accumulation behavior, mirroring patterns of the 2020 bull cycle.

Bitcoin whale accumulation analysis. Source: CryptoQuant

In the current bull market, this distinct pattern emerged three times and is marked by Bitcoin whales’ rapid BTC accumulation, even as retail investors doubted a positive directional bias.

These periods were riddled with bearish market sentiment and preceded substantial price surges, suggesting that whales were positioning themselves ahead of the recovery.

While BTC currently exhibited a price decline, the analyst said,

“There are no signs yet that the market-leading whales are exiting.”

As shown in the chart above, “Pattern No. 3” witnessed a similar rate of accumulation, but BTC price remained sideways.

Related: Bitcoin trader issues’ overbought' warning as BTC price eyes $84K

Can Bitcoin flip $84,000 after the CME gap?

As the New York trading session started on March 31, BTC rallied to close the CME futures gap that formed over the weekend. The CME gap highlights the difference between the closing price of the BTC futures on Friday and the opening price on Sunday evening. 

Bitcoin CME gap analysis. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

While Bitcoin started this week out on a bullish tip, there are a handful of US economic events that could have an impact on the price.

• April. 1, JOLTS Job Openings: A metric reflecting labor market demand; a decline might signal weakness.

• April 2, US tariff rollout: termed “Liberation Day,” with 20% and larger tariffs coming on for up to 25 countries.

• April 4, Non-farm payrolls (NFP), Unemployment rate and Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s speech.

Bitcoin 4-hour chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

BTC’s immediate point of interest is to flip the $84,000 level into support for a bullish continuation. Reclaiming $84,000 could push BTC prices above the 50-day exponential moving average, which might bolster a short-term rally to the supply zone between $86,700 and $88,700.

On the contrary, prolonged consolidation under $84,000 strengthens its resistance characteristics, which might eventually lead to further corrections to downside liquidity areas in the $78,200 to $76,560 zone.

Related: Bitcoin’s ‘digital gold’ claim challenged as traders move into bonds and gold hits new highs

This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.