Find out who the whales are in the cryptocurrency market, how to track their actions, and how to use their strategies for your own profit.
Table of content
Introduction
In the world of cryptocurrencies, the word ‘whales’ has become commonplace. At the same time, many traders do not fully understand who they really are, how they act and how their actions can be used to their advantage.
In this article, we will discuss:
Who are the whales in the cryptocurrency market?
Every market participant wants one thing: to increase their assets. This is natural, because no one wants to lose significant amounts of money.
However, whales think very differently from most traders. Their decisions are based on large-scale calculations and long-term strategies, which we will discuss further.
Whales are market participants who own significant amounts of assets and, as a result, have real power to influence trends, manage liquidity, and withstand long-term losses for strategic goals.
They can build up positions over a long period of time or, conversely, gradually exit them without panic so as not to move the market too drastically.
Whales usually include not only individual investors with large capital, but also:
Such structures often manage hundreds of millions or even billions of dollars. Their actions are usually planned in advance and backed by clear risk management strategies.
Sometimes, a group of small traders who unite to act as a single powerful participant can also play the role of a whale. In any case, a whale is someone who has sufficient assets to significantly influence the balance of supply and demand.
At the same time, it is important to understand that there are many such large players in the market, and each of them has their own strategies, time horizons and capital volumes. It cannot be said that all whales are manipulative — they differ in style and motivation.
Large players influence the market through their ability to operate with huge volumes. This allows them to:
To see the impact of big capital on the market, let’s look at an example of how big players created a deficit on the HBAR coin. We begin with an analysis of the cluster chart:
Note:
An accumulation zone is a price range in which, over a certain period of time, a large player or group of participants gradually gain positions by buying up an asset without drastic price movements.
The main characteristic of such a zone is that the price remains within a narrow range for a long time with increasing volumes, without a clear trend. This indicates that someone is systematically accumulating large volumes, concealing their activity so as not to move the market sharply up or down.
According to the aggregated delta/balance data in the dashboard, we can see that market sales prevailed (red delta bars), but they no longer had a significant impact on price movements:
In this case, the accumulation occurred because large capital accepted the flow of market sales into its limit orders.
Please note that this was a fairly long period of time — about 3 months. During this period, a relatively narrow price range formed, within which the so-called whales were able to gain positions.
Why do we say ‘relatively’ narrow? Because for scalpers or day traders, a 40% price fluctuation up or down already looks extremely large, while for investors with multi-million dollar portfolios, this is just a working corridor. The main thing for them is to accumulate the necessary volume of coins at an acceptable price, even if this range reaches several tens of percent.
Now let’s look at the result: after accumulation and creation of a supply deficit, the price grew by 650%. If we exclude the accumulation range itself, the net profit would be approximately 600%. But this was only possible because the whales first created a deficit by buying up coins and blocking supply.
Impressive, isn’t it? You can find out about extreme market conditions in the article ‘How to determine a deficit or surplus?’
It is possible to track the activity of large players, and this is one of the most powerful strategies for a trader: to go together with large capital.
Essentially, this is an analysis strategy based on identifying large traded volumes and their impact on price movements. In other words, analysing the distribution of liquidity, which reveals the intentions of whales. Instead of trying to predict the market using indicators or news, traders focus on where the big money is going.
Let’s look at the example of the ZEN coin:
As in the previous example, after the decline, the price stopped and began to trade within a certain range. This is called a sideways trend. The cumulative delta showed that sales prevailed in this price range. This is also confirmed by the horizontal delta. At the same time, the heat map shows how buyers set large limits at each price decline, restraining sellers and preventing them from pushing the price of the coin lower.
Thus, we see a classic picture of position accumulation by large investors:
This scenario often signals that a large player is preparing for further movement.
As a result, there was a 460% increase after the accumulation was completed:
As you can see, large investors can drive trends with their large capital. Therefore, if you learn to recognise their footprints, you will be able to join the movement in its early stages and gain a significant advantage over most of the market.
This does not guarantee a 100% win, but it significantly increases your chances of working in the right direction alongside the strongest market players.
Instead of trying to swim against the tide, it is much smarter for a trader or investor with a relatively small deposit to side with big capital.
If you see that whales are accumulating positions, gaining volume or, conversely, already fixing profits, it is much more effective to join this movement than to try to swim against the tide.
This means:
If you understand the logic of the whales, you will be able to profit from the wave they create.
To see the actions of big capital, you need high-quality analytical tools based on market mechanics logic, not just price indicators.
After all, price is a consequence, while the cause of the trend movement is liquidity and the balance of supply and demand. That is why it is necessary to use:
Such tools help you see not only the direction of price movement, but also its causes and true strength, and respond in a timely manner to signals left by large capital. Only with such a multi-level approach can you not just guess the intentions of big players, but actually follow them and use their strategy to your own advantage.
This approach offers several advantages at once:
The main thing is to be able to correctly interpret market data and check several sources at once (for example, evaluate data on different exchanges) so as not to fall for fake signals.
If you are not yet fluent in supply and demand analysis, it is worth taking a training course that describes in detail the main principles of cryptocurrency analysis that work on any timeframe.
The market is not always predictable, but if you follow in the wake of big capital, your trading becomes much more reliable.
It is a popular myth that whales never lose. In reality, big players can also fall into losses. The only difference is that they are prepared and have the resources to weather temporary losses or long periods of drawdown for the sake of large-scale profits. Their strategy is not limited to quick deals: it is a whole complex of risk management, liquidity management and long-term thinking.
That is why large investors often form positions gradually and cautiously, controlling volume and distributing entries.
An example from the traditional market: Warren Buffett could sit on billions in losses for years before his positions turned a profit.
The crypto market is an environment in which, in most cases, large players set the direction and pace of the trend. They can significantly influence supply and demand. But instead of fearing their actions, you can make them your allies.
If you learn to see their moves, track volumes, and react correctly to the actions of large market participants, you will gain real advantages in the crypto market. All the necessary analytical tools are already available on the Resonance platform. The main thing is to learn how to use them correctly, have strategies for analysing and realising trading ideas, and stick to risk management.
Choose the right side and move confidently — the market rewards those who understand its mechanics and are ready to act!
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