In June 2025 Bitcoin began to weaken amid the escalating conflict in the Middle East. News on 22 June that the United States had carried out an air-strike on Iran triggered a market crash. Under the wave of selling pressure, the price briefly dipped below the psychologically important $100 000 mark. While some investors panicked, whales buying the dip—large players who seized the opportunity to scoop up crypto at bargain prices.
The editorial team at Quickex set out to discover exactly what whales are buying and which assets they were dumping. We also examined how this fresh whale activity on the market might affect prices.
Why Investors Monitor Whale Wallets (Smart Money)
Blockchain transparency lets anyone see whale purchases the moment they settle on-chain. Traders then watch these transfers to understand what whales are buying before prices fully react. A big influx of capital into a project often signals growing confidence and can ignite momentum, making early visibility into tokens whales are buying a valuable edge. Outflows from large addresses to exchanges, on the other hand, warn of potential selling pressure and provide time to manage risk before heightened whale activity on the market hits spot order books.
Because these deep-pocketed players usually run quantitative strategies, their moves are treated as Smart Money purchases and a sentiment gauge: sustained inflows into cold wallets point to ongoing whale accumulation, while steady distributions hint at a shifting narrative. Copy traders also look for fresh coins whales are buying to ride emerging trends; when dashboards show new cryptocurrencies whales are accumulating, the broader community often takes notice. In short, following large-holder addresses turns the blockchain into a real-time tape that reveals crowd psychology, liquidity shifts, and potential catalysts long before they surface in headlines.
Coins Whales Were Buying During the Market Plunge
Nansen data, 16–22 June 2025 – a snapshot of whale purchases, Smart Money purchases, and the tokens whales are buying.
- PENDLE – the main buyer was Arca, snapping up the token on Binance.
- CLANKER – anonymous whales were actively accumulating the coin; here’s an example of a large investor who stuffed their wallets during the dip.
- KTA – another cryptocurrency targeted by big money this week: this whale spent a small fortune increasing their position.
- FXS – two major traders, 1 and 2, bought aggressively into weakness.
- SKY – the chief buyer was this DAO wallet, whose owners converted MKR into SKY as part of their ongoing whale accumulation strategy.
Lookonchain data show that whales also began accumulating IP and HYPE. These tokens join the growing list of cryptocurrencies whales are accumulating. They also expand the broader basket of coins whales are buying.
What Whales Were Buying, According to Nansen (16–22 June 2025)
The Coins Whales Were Dumping
The same Nansen data, 16–22 June 2025.
- VIRTUAL – two large traders, 1 and 2, were the main sellers, even as several other whales took the opposite side.
- SYRUP – the token faced heavy selling from Dragonfly, which has been off-loading through FalconX.
- WLD – this whale was the most active seller, moving the entire position into USDC. If the price continues to fall, the address may have insider information and is worth watching.
- MNT – Spartan is reducing exposure, but in small batches.
- ALT – the SevenX team has transferred tokens to an exchange, signaling a likely sale.
What Whales Were Selling, According to Nansen (16–22 June 2025)
Lookonchain analysts noticed that during the sell-off BlackRock, the largest asset-manager on Wall Street, began to unload its month-long accumulation of Ethereum. At the same time, there are also whales quietly buying ETH on weakness, so it is too early to declare the market one-sided.
Analysts recorded that AAVE has also fallen out of favor: two whales sold 24 936 tokens worth $5.51 million.
Key Takeaways
- Rotation into niche tokens: Large holders concentrated fresh capital on mid-cap names such as PENDLE, CLANKER, KTA, FXS and SKY, signalling a hunt for higher upside after Bitcoin’s pullback.
- Selective scaling out of older bets: At the same time, Smart Money trimmed positions in VIRTUAL, SYRUP, WLD, MNT and ALT, hinting at a shift away from narratives that have lost momentum.
- Divergent stances on majors: BlackRock reduced its month-long Ethereum build-up, yet other deep-pocketed addresses quietly added on weakness, suggesting no clear consensus on the second-largest asset’s near-term direction.
Keep tabs on live cryptocurrency prices with Quickex and watch the tokens whales are buying today. You never know which coins whales are buying next.