KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 23): Long-term holders of Bitcoin (BTC) are at a multi-year high but investors are not taking profit as yet.

In its The Week Onchain (Week 47, 2021) newsletter on Monday (Nov 22), analytics provider Glassnode said these long-term holders (LTHs) appear to be reducing their spending but continued to add to their positions.

It said BTC price tumbled this week from a high of US$66,281 to a low of US$55,705, rattling a previously quiet and bullish run in price action.

It said while price stays pinned below new highs and sentiment remains scattered, BTC's stakeholders are actively adjusting to new market information.

Glassnode said this has shown up as a recent shifting of coin distribution amongst holders, which will likely impact the market's short-term response.

The analytics firm said that generally speaking, spikes in on-chain profit-taking during bullish impulses are to be expected as price climbs to new highs, and are typical for any bull market.

It said as the realisation of profits increase, so too does the probability of establishing a macro top.

Glassnode signalled that the total supply held by short-term holders (STHs) is at a multi-year low, at less than 3 million BTC – which in turn means that the amount held by LTHs is at a multi-year high.

It said seeing STH supply this low whilst price is near all-time highs is a relatively unique case.