24,000 BTC Just Left Exchanges: Is Bitcoin’s (BTC) Supply Crunch Heating Up?

BTC held on exchanges has dropped notably, according to Santiment. On Monday, about 24,073 units left exchanges on a net basis.

This is the largest daily outflow in seven months.

Fresh Bullish Hopes

The last similar move came on March 1. Data compiled by Santiment showed that exchange-held Bitcoin has now fallen to around 6.50% of the total supply. Large outflows are often seen as a positive sign because fewer coins remain readily available for selling. If demand stays steady, tighter supply could support higher prices. The analytics platform added,

“Persistent withdrawals can signal investors shifting BTC toward longer-term custody rather than preparing to sell. Outflows alone guarantee nothing, but falling exchange supply strengthens the bullish setup.”

The latest data from CryptoQuant adds to the bullish picture. Its analysis revealed that mid-size Bitcoin inflows have fallen on some major exchanges even as the crypto asset has climbed more than 33% since mid-August. On Binance, the 7-day average of mid-size inflows fell from 4,155 BTC on August 16 to 2,648 units on October 7, a decline of over 36%. Bitcoin was trading near $63,000 in mid-August and is now above $84,000.

This means the drop has come even as the price has been trading on the higher side. Coinbase Prime also saw a similar decline, with mid-size inflows falling from 1,620 to 1,370 BTC, down around 15%.

Coinbase Advanced, on the other hand, moved in the opposite direction. Mid-size inflows there increased to 4,760 from 2,520 BTC in August. But the latest reading remains below the 5,000 BTC level. Current mid-size inflows on Binance and Coinbase Prime are well below some of the bigger spikes recorded earlier this year, including those seen in February, June, and late August.

The trend is important because lower exchange inflows can point to less selling activity. Mid-size investors do not appear to be rushing to send coins to exchanges.

ETF Inflows Turn Positive

On the institutional side of things, US spot Bitcoin ETFs saw a quick change in investor mood this week. After starting Monday with almost $90 million in net outflows, the funds bounced back on Tuesday with combined inflows of $119 million.

BlackRock’s IBIT led the recovery after pulling in $122 million in fresh money and recording the biggest inflow among the ETFs. Morgan Stanley’s MSBT also attracted $7.84 million in capital. Meanwhile, the Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust saw the biggest outflow, losing around $11 million.