Bitcoin has recently shown a recovery above the $68,000 mark. Here’s who could be behind this rally, according to data from the chain.
The Bitcoin Coinbase Premium Gap has remained negative lately
As noted by an analyst in a CryptoQuant Quicktake afterthe Coinbase Premium Gap has decreased alongside the recent price increase. The “Coinbase Premium Gap” here refers to an indicator that tracks the difference between Bitcoin prices listed on Coinbase (USD pair) and Binance (USDT pair).
When the value of this metric is positive, it means that the asset’s price is currently higher on Coinbase than on Binance. Such a trend suggests that buying pressure is higher or selling pressure is lower for the former than for the latter.
On the other hand, the fact that the indicator is negative means that Coinbase’s users may participate in a larger number of sales than Binance’s, because BTC trades at a lower rate there.
Here is a chart showing the trend in the Bitcoin Coinbase Premium Gap over the past few days:
As shown in the chart above, the Bitcoin Coinbase Premium Gap has recently reached a negative value, implying that Binance users are willing to pay more for the asset than Coinbase customers. Earlier in the past day, the indicator had even fallen to a low of around -106, indicating that the coin briefly traded at a premium of $106 on Binance. The graph shows that this buying wave on the stock market coincided with the start of the stock market last stage up for BTC.
Binance is a platform used by investors all over the world, while Coinbase focuses heavily on US-based holders, especially the big ones institutional entities. As such, the Coinbase Premium Gap can be seen as a reflection of how the American whales differ in behavior from global investors.
For much of 2024, Bitcoin has closely followed this indicator, suggesting that US-based institutional investors have been the primary drivers of the market. However, the latest trend clearly deviates from this pattern as it appears that buying from Binance users has caused the uptrend.
The quantitative report notes that this trend does not mean demand from U.S. entities has declined. “Over the past two weeks, demand for US Bitcoin spot ETFs has soared, with net inflows of approximately 47,000 Bitcoin,” the analyst explains.
Most spot ETFs use Coinbase as a custodian, so moves involving these funds could ultimately impact the Coinbase Premium Gap. But since the metric has remained negative regardless of the recent inflows, it appears that demand from the Binance whales has simply exceeded US demand.
BTC price
At the time of writing, Bitcoin is trading around $68,700, up 2% over the past 24 hours.