Bitcoin Price Bleeds As Galaxy Digital Unleashes $1.5 Billion Sell-Off

Bitcoin's recent price surge has come to an end, with the cryptocurrency falling from an intraday peak above $119,000 to trade as low as $115,800. The 2.7% slide followed a significant on-chain signal, as Galaxy Digital transferred over 10,000 BTC, worth around $1.18 billion, to major exchanges in less than eight hours. This transfer originated from a Satoshi-era whale that re-awakened this month and had been dormant since 2011. The whale had been chopping an 80,009-BTC trove into 10,000-coin tranches, with the final 40,191 BTC landing at Galaxy Digital. Many analysts interpreted this move as a potential sale, which is now a reality. On-chain data shows Galaxy Digital sending Bitcoin to various crypto exchanges almost every minute to sell it. The BTC price reacted accordingly, slipping through $118,000 and then falling to $116,000, wiping roughly $55 billion from bitcoin's market value in just four hours. Galaxy Digital, run by billionaire Michael Novogratz, has not commented on the transfer or filed any Form 8-K that might indicate a balance-sheet reshuffle. Market spectators are theorizing about the motives behind the sale, with some speculating that it could be related to a client or a move into Ethereum. Despite the short-term price action, many remain optimistic about the long-term prospects of Bitcoin.