Bitcoin Accumulation: Data Shows Institutions Are Net Buyers Again

After a phase of net Bitcoin selling, on-chain data suggests institutional entities have started accumulating the cryptocurrency once more.

As pointed out by Capriole Investments founder Charles Edwards in an X post, institutions have once again turned into net buyers of Bitcoin. Below is the chart shared by Edwards that shows the trend in institutional behavior over the last few years.

From the graph, it’s visible that institutional investors switched their behavior to selling back in October as Bitcoin observed a bearish shift following its price top above $126,000.

The distribution calmed down as the cryptocurrency stabilized into a phase of consolidation in December, with a turn to positive levels starting to appear. The metric has now grown further in the new year, a potential sign that institutional behavior may really be changing to one of net accumulation.

In the chart, the analyst has highlighted the price moves that followed shifts to net buying from these humongous traders in the past. It would appear that, on average, Bitcoin rose 109% after this signal appeared.

Though the individual outcomes have seen high variance, ranging from a rally of 390% after the 2020 signal to a drop of 13% in 2024. The last time that the signal appeared was in the first half of 2025 and what followed was a price surge of 41%. It now remains to be seen how the cryptocurrency’s price will be affected this time around.

A notable pillar of institutional buying in the sector today is represented by the treasury companies. Like the wider institutional behavior, these entities were also net sellers of Bitcoin late last year, as Edwards has highlighted in another X post.

The above chart shows the trend in the 30-day rate of change in the Buy-Sell Ratio associated with BTC treasuries, a metric that compares their cumulative USD buying against selling. It would appear that the indicator has just flipped positive in 2026. “Bitcoin treasury companies just flipped to net buying again,” noted the analyst.

Strategy, the largest corporate treasury holder of the cryptocurrency in the world, kept accumulating even as the asset observed its bearish shift. But the buying from the firm wasn’t enough, as the rate of change in the Buy-Sell Ratio still plunged into the negative zone In November.

Bitcoin has shown a move away from stagnation during the last few days as its price has climbed back to the $93,800 level.