Ethereum (ETH ($2,927.63)) underwent a minor 1.1% drop on Wednesday, amidst a slight improvement in market conditions this week. The leading altcoin appears to be in a highly “sensitive phase,” driven largely by aggressive buying from major investor groups. In fact, a new analysis found that wallets holding between 10,000 and 100,000 ETH have reached a combined balance exceeding 21 million ETH.

This is an all-time high for this category and a level not witnessed since the network’s inception.

Ethereum Supply Plunging on Exchanges

The latest accumulation has unfolded steadily in recent months and overlaps with the asset’s gradual move toward the $2,956 level. The trend does not stop there. Holders with more than 100,000 ETH have also expanded their positions, bringing their total balance to roughly 4.3 million ETH. According to CryptoQuant, the increase reflects rising conviction among institutional-scale investors and other high-liquidity participants.

At the same time, data from Binance shows a continued drawdown of its exchange-held ETH, as reserves have been found to be falling from September onward to approximately 3.764 million ETH in November. The decline indicates a broad migration of ETH into staking contracts or offline storage, which reinforces the accumulation wave identified across whale groups.

The analysis emphasizes that Ethereum’s current market behavior remains closely linked to these shifts among large holders. Previous cycles have shown that periods of heavy whale accumulation typically coincide with the creation of solid price bases, which have historically come ahead of major upward movements. With exchange supply tightening and deep-pocketed investors increasing their holdings, the data points to an important structural phase in Ethereum’s long-term outlook.

OG Whale Bets Big on Ethereum

Adding to the heightened whale activity, Arkham has also spotlighted a Hyperliquid “OG Whale,” who previously made close to $200 million by shorting the market ahead of the October 10 crash. The intelligence firm reported that this trader has now turned strongly bullish on ETH and has injected an additional $10 million into an existing long position, which brings their total ETH longs to $44.5 million.

Within the first hour of the move, the position was already showing gains of more than $300,000. The OG Whale has become a notable figure over the past month for a streak of precisely timed shorts, and this pivot toward large-scale ETH longs indicates they may now be positioning for an upward price move.

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