New numbers from the leading crypto exchange Binance indicate large institutional players are buying Ethereum (ETH) and XRP at an increasing pace.
In its December markets overview, Binance Research offers a glimpse at its over-the-counter markets, where traders negotiate large buys and sells at fixed prices.
According to the report, crypto whales placed a number of large Bitcoin sells early in the month, followed by an above-average level of buys for both ETH and XRP.
“Going into OTC flows, December started with a few sizeable BTC sells. We thought this could kickstart increased sell pressure on BTC, but prices held up well.
As BTC moved sideways, sell flows for small-cap altcoins were dominant. Large-cap altcoins like ETH and XRP, on the other hand, were in demand and saw a higher than usual amount of buy flows.”
In addition, Binance speculates that Bitcoin whales may have been anticipating a late December rally that never materialized.
“Starting from a few days before Christmas to the end of the month, two-way flows for BTC picked up. Buyers may have been anticipating a Santa or an end-of-the-year rally, and sellers may have turned bearish after seeing BTC fail to pick up steam throughout December.”
The report also cites an uptick of buy flows in Binance Coin (BNB) as the crypto asset dipped below $15, and again as it fell below $13.