[DigitalToday reporter Yoonseo Lee] Large wallets appear to be filling a demand gap as Strategy's influence on bitcoin buying weakens.

Cryptopolitan, a blockchain media outlet, reported on Oct. 20 that Strategy has not made large-scale bitcoin purchases over the past 5 weeks, but accumulation by whale wallets and major holders continued.

The key is a shift in who is driving demand. Over the past month, wallets holding 10 to 10,000 BTC bought a total of 88,987 BTC. Over the same period, bitcoin bought by Strategy amounted to about 3 percent of that volume. This suggests the driver of bitcoin price moves is shifting from companies to large holders.

Strategy recently combined bitcoin purchases with efforts to defend cash-like resources. Its latest 8-K filing included the sale of $22 million worth of common stock, the purchase of 267 BTC and spending of $193 million to redeem STRC preferred shares. From Sept. 14 to Oct. 18, Strategy bought 3,466 BTC worth $290 million, but over the same period it used $890 million in cash-like resources for its preferred-share redemption programme.

The company expanded the cap on the redemption programme to $3 billion from $2 billion to keep STRC preferred shares trading within a target price range. Cash on hand stood at $447.3 million as of Oct. 18. That has led to views that additional funding may be needed to continue the redemption programme.

Still, Strategy continues to hold 848,517 BTC. Recent bitcoin price moves suggest a rebound is possible even without corporate treasury demand.

Market participants continue to watch whether spot demand recovers. Recent on-chain data showed the number of small wallets holding even a small amount of bitcoin increased, and balances held by large holders also rose. Over the past 30 days, the number of newly created whale wallets holding 1,000 to 10,000 BTC rose by 45.

The structure of bitcoin holdings is also changing. The share held by new whales rose to about 33 percent in October from 18 percent at the start of the year. This means their long-term holdings are smaller than those of existing whales, but their influence on short-term trading could be greater.

New whales' average purchase prices are also drawing attention. They entered when bitcoin was trading between $59,000 and $110,000 and continued buying even during declines. With bitcoin recently falling as low as $81,000 at one point, the cushion versus their average purchase prices has narrowed.

It is still unclear whether they will keep holding even when sitting on unrealised losses. Accumulation has picked up recently, but that alone makes it hard to judge new whales' willingness to hold long term. Whales newly detected on-chain do not necessarily mean new money is coming in. It could also reflect existing large investors reorganising their wallets.

Ultimately, the bitcoin market is entering a phase where it is becoming more sensitive to movements by a broader group of large holders than to buying by Strategy alone. The next focus will be the strength of any recovery in spot demand and whether new whales continue accumulating at current price levels.