Bitcoin’s recent slide below the $70,000 mark has triggered a wave of buying among retail investors, but market signals suggest the correction may not be finished yet. Data from blockchain analytics firm Santiment indicates that large holders, often called whales, have begun selling a significant portion of the Bitcoin they accumulated earlier, a pattern that historically signals further downside pressure.

At the time of writing, Bitcoin is trading around $67,984, according to data from CoinMarketCap.

Whales Begin Taking Profits After Bitcoin Touched $74K

According to Santiment, large Bitcoin holders who control between 10 and 10,000 BTC started taking profits once the price reached about $74,000 earlier this week. These investors had previously accumulated heavily between Feb. 23 and Mar. 3 when Bitcoin was trading in the $62,900 to $69,600 range.

After the market briefly pushed above $70,000 and touched $74,000 on Wednesday, whales began offloading their holdings. Santiment estimates that this group has already sold about 66 percent of the Bitcoin they purchased during that accumulation phase.

The shift in behavior suggests that large investors may be securing profits rather than expecting an immediate continuation of the rally.

Retail Investors Increasing Their Holdings

While whales have been selling, smaller investors have moved in the opposite direction. Santiment data shows that retail participants holding less than 0.01 Bitcoin have been increasing their positions as prices declined.

Historically, this pattern often appears during market corrections. When smaller investors begin buying aggressively while large holders distribute their coins, it can signal that the downward move has not fully played out.

Santiment noted that such a trend has appeared in past market cycles where retail enthusiasm increased just before another leg down in price.

Market Sentiment Falls Into Extreme Fear

The recent drop in Bitcoin’s price has also affected overall market sentiment. The widely tracked Crypto Fear & Greed Index declined by six points, pushing the indicator deeper into the Extreme Fear zone with a score of 12 on Saturday.

A reading in this range reflects strong caution among investors and often accompanies periods of heightened volatility. While extreme fear can sometimes mark local bottoms, analysts say it may also appear during extended corrections.

Analysts See Possibility of Further Downside

Some market analysts share the view that Bitcoin could still fall before stabilizing. Michael van de Poppe, founder of MN Trading Capital, said Bitcoin must hold support near the $67,000 to $68,000 range to avoid deeper losses.

In a recent post on X, van de Poppe said that if Bitcoin fails to maintain this level, the market could revisit previous lows to capture liquidity before potentially moving higher again.

A retest of lower support zones would not be unusual in the middle of a broader bullish cycle, where markets often pull back sharply before resuming upward momentum.

Spot Bitcoin ETFs Record Major Outflows

The market pullback has also coincided with increased selling pressure in exchange traded funds tied to Bitcoin. Data from Farside Investors shows that U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded $348.9 million in net outflows on Friday.

This marked the largest single day of outflows since Feb. 12 across the 11 spot ETF products currently trading in the United States.

ETF flows have become an important indicator for the crypto market since the approval of spot Bitcoin funds earlier this year. Large inflows often support price momentum, while outflows can amplify short term declines.

$60K Could Still Act as a Strong Support Level

Despite the current uncertainty, some analysts believe Bitcoin may have a strong support zone around $60,000. Economist Timothy Peterson pointed to the Bitcoin Price to Metcalfe Value model, which suggests that the $60,000 level has historically served as a reliable market floor.

Peterson said the metric indicates roughly a 99.5 percent probability that Bitcoin will remain above that level in the current cycle.

Bitcoin previously fell close to $60,000 on Feb. 6 during a broader pullback that followed its October all time high of $126,000. The market later rebounded modestly, but recent whale activity suggests that the short term direction remains uncertain.

For now, traders are closely watching whether Bitcoin can hold above the $67,000 support zone or if the market will revisit lower levels before the next major move.