Long-term Bitcoin holders have, in total, spent a milestone $10 billion to buy the cryptocurrency and have been pulling back from selling as its price retreats to its 2021 all-time highs, says an analyst.

“For the first time ever, the realized capitalization of long-term holders has exceeded $10 billion,” CryptoQuant contributor Amr Taha said in an Aug. 27 post .

Long-term holders less likely to panic sell

The realized cap takes into account the price at which each Bitcoin ( BTC ) was last sold. It’s realized cap is “often compared to Market Cap to get a sense of the overall market vibe,” according to crypto analytics firm Bitbo. 

Long-term holders are those who’ve held Bitcoin for over 155 days. Taha explained that once holders have crossed the 155-day mark, “the likelihood of selling decreases significantly, meaning these holders are less likely to sell during short-term market fluctuations.”

Since Bitcoin began its 29-day streak of trading below $69,000 on July 30, selling pressure from long-term holders has “decreased 3.7 times,” fellow CryptoQuant contributor Axel Adler noted on Aug. 27.

Bitcoin is currently trading at $59,404, down 5.47% over the past 24 hours. It’s down slightly on the week by 0.11% after touching a high of $64,791, according to CoinMarketCap.

Long-term Bitcoin holder buys hit $10B mark as price slips below $60K image 0

Its current price is around 8% lower than what the average Bitcoin long-term holder had paid for Bitcoin — $64,490, according to Chainexposed data .

However, crypto traders believe the price might see further downside, which may force long-term holders to hold on even longer while they wait for better profit-taking opportunities.

Related: Bitcoin chart signals possible ‘extremely’ quick move to $68K — Traders

“Bitcoin will retrace deep enough to convince you that the Bull Market is over,” pseudonymous crypto trader Rekt Capital added . 

Many traders view $50,000 as a crucial support level, and if it breaks, it could push Bitcoin into an uncertainty zone.

It comes after a June Glassnode report found that around three-quarters of all circulating Bitcoin hasn’t been moved for the past six months or more .

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This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.