According to Cointelegraph, the number of Bitcoin wallets holding 100 BTC or more has reached a 17-month high, following a surge in hodling over the past month. Data from the Blockchain analytics platform Santiment revealed that over 283 wallets surpassed the 100 Bitcoin mark in August.

Santiment noted, "As crypto prices have let retail traders down, Bitcoin whales are growing in number. A net gain of +283 wallets holding at least 100 BTC has emerged in just 1 month." The total number of such wallets now stands at 16,120, breaking a 17-month high.

During the same period, wallets with at least 10 Bitcoin, referred to as "sharks," have also increased their holdings. Santiment estimates that these wallets, ranging between 10 and 10,000 Bitcoins, have collectively accumulated over 133,000 coins worth more than $7.6 billion in the last 30 days.

Adam Back, CEO of Blockstream and inventor of Hashcash, observed that since Bitcoin's price dropped from over $62,000 to around $58,000 on Aug. 28, whales have been actively buying. "Whales back buying 450btc/day every minute all day long, since dip on 28th. Same as Bitcoin mined per day. Go ahead sell them cheap corn," he stated.

Santiment attributes the increase in whale activity to smaller traders who are impatiently selling their holdings. Crypto analyst and CryptoQuant contributor Axel Adler Jr speculated that smaller traders might be feeling pressured to sell as the price drops below their entry point. He noted, "In the current bull market, the metric has not fallen below 17%, the current figure is -8%. If it continues to decline, the number of people willing to sell coins at a loss could double."

The Crypto Fear and Greed Index, which measures crypto market sentiment, is currently at 26, indicating a state of "Fear." Throughout August, the index showed more days of fear than greed, with an average rating of 37, firmly placing it within the "Fear" territory.

Despite the prevailing sentiment, Bitgrow Lab founder Vivek Sen suggests that the increased whale activity might be a positive sign for the market. He pointed out that historically, significant whale buying has often preceded new all-time highs for Bitcoin. "The last time whales bought a lot, Bitcoin hit a new ATH," Sen remarked.