Bitcoin Profit Taking Speeds Up Post Golden Cross, Hourly BTC Cashouts Top $500M, Blockchain Data Show
Bitcoin (BTC) has experienced a surge in profit-taking activity following a significant bullish signal two weeks ago. On May 22nd, BTC’s 50-day simple moving average (SMA) crossed above its 200-day SMA, confirming a golden cross – a technical indicator generally interpreted as signaling bullish long-term momentum. This coincided with Bitcoin reaching a record high above $111,000, according to CoinDesk data.
However, on-chain data from Glassnode reveals a counter-intuitive trend: despite the record high, holders are increasingly realizing profits rather than holding for further potential gains. Glassnode reported intense profit-taking activity, with the entity-adjusted realized profit exceeding $500 million per hour on three separate occasions within a 24-hour period. This metric represents the total USD profit generated from all on-chain coin movements where the transaction price surpasses the price at the last movement.
Analysis of Glassnode’s data reveals a steady increase in profit-taking since the latter half of May, with multiple instances surpassing the $500 million mark – the most significant activity since early February. This observation is corroborated by the entity-adjusted spent output profit ratio (SOPR), another on-chain metric tracking the profit levels of moved coins. The entity-adjusted version filters out intra-entity transactions, offering a more accurate reflection of real economic activity.
Glassnode’s weekly report highlights that the recent all-time high (ATH) breakout has driven a notable increase in profit-taking, with the average coin realizing a 16% profit. This level of profitability is surpassed on fewer than 8% of trading days, suggesting a significant shift towards profit-realization. While considerable, the current profit-taking activity is still less intense than observed during previous major price peaks.
At the time of writing, BTC is trading at $105,600. This activity occurs amidst reports that President Donald Trump’s Truth Social platform is nearing the launch of a Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF), potentially increasing accessibility for retail investors. The interplay between this development and the observed profit-taking warrants further observation.
