Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP Whales Accumulate as CryptoQuant Flags Late-Stage Bear Market

Analytics firm CryptoQuant has recorded simultaneous whale accumulation in Bitcoin, Ethereum and XRP, calling it a sign of the closing phase of the bear market. The signal matters most for large crypto holders and traders who track institutional buying behavior.

Whales Are Buying Even as Charts Stay Weak

According to CryptoQuant's weekly report, the largest Bitcoin, Ethereum and XRP wallets are adding coins to their holdings even though prices for all three assets sit near yearly lows. Julio Moreno, the firm's head of research, said large holders are buying at prices close to their average acquisition cost or even below it. He added that this pattern is typical of the final months of a bear cycle, once most sellers have already left the market. CryptoQuant has flagged similar episodes ahead of past market turns, though the firm stresses that matching conditions never guarantee the same outcome twice.

For XRP the gap stands out. The realized price, meaning the average cost basis the last time coins moved between wallets, sits near $0.75, while the market price holds around $1.05-1.10. CryptoQuant calls this $0.30-0.35 gap a marker of the cycle's late stage. Bitcoin and Ethereum show similar patterns, though the report does not break out exact realized-price figures for those two assets. Together, the three coins tell one story, where sellers are running out and buyers keep adding to positions in small, steady batches.

"This positioning lowers downside pressure and is consistent with the final phase of the cycle's decline."

- Julio Moreno, Head of Research at CryptoQuant, from the firm's weekly report, August 2026

Bitcoin ETF Inflows Back Up the Whale Signal

Alongside the whale buying, US spot Bitcoin ETFs pulled in $244.4 million on Wednesday alone, with a combined three-day inflow of $626 million. It is the first sustained inflow streak in weeks, after a stretch where funds saw outflows more often than fresh investment. As recently as early summer, some days brought outflows in the hundreds of millions of dollars.

The overlap of two signals, on-chain buying and buying through regulated funds, shows retail whales and institutional investors moving in the same direction. Neither indicator alone guarantees a reversal. But when on-chain data and ETF flows line up, CryptoQuant's case for an ending sell-off carries more weight than either signal would on its own.

XRP Sits Below a Death Cross Despite Whale Buying

On Binance, XRP traded at $1.05, down 1.4% on the day. The technical picture pushes back against the on-chain optimism. The daily chart shows the 50-day exponential moving average slipping below the 200-day, forming a death cross, a classic, lagging weakness signal.

The relative strength index sits at 39.5, closing in on oversold territory, while the average directional index reads just 10.4. There is no strong trend either way. Squeeze momentum is negative too, so the market looks more frozen than coiled for a sharp move. XRP is trading in a $1.00-1.20 range at roughly a $66 billion market cap, down more than half from the $2.20 it held at the start of 2026.

Traders point to $1.12, the 200-day moving average, as the level that would confirm a reversal. Immediate support sits at $1.04, and a break opens the door to $0.9167 and then $0.8358. Resistance starts near the $1.1145 Fibonacci mark, with a firm ceiling all the way up at $1.60.

What to Weigh Before Buying at This Stage

The technical setup and the on-chain data currently point in opposite directions, so it helps to hold several scenarios in mind rather than lean on one report or one indicator.

• Whale accumulation does not guarantee a fast price reversal, only lower pressure for further declines.
• The death cross on XRP's chart stays active until price closes back above the 200-day average.
• XRP's nearest support sits at $1.04, and a break there opens a path toward $0.92 and lower.
• The three-day Bitcoin ETF inflow streak could reverse as fast as it started and is not a confirmed trend yet.

The Next Test: Whether Support Levels Hold

In the coming days, the market will test whether whales can keep prices above current support. For XRP that means $1.04, for Bitcoin it means sustaining the demand behind the three-day ETF inflow streak. If support gives way, whale accumulation will turn into another failed attempt to call the bottom. Past cycles suggest confirming a signal like this usually takes anywhere from a few days to a few weeks.