Owen Gunden, a prominent Bitcoin whale and one of the earliest adopters of the cryptocurrency, has completely divested his entire Bitcoin portfolio. He sold his 11,000 BTC stack, which reached a peak valuation of $1.3 billion, through several transfers to Kraken, completing the process on Thursday, November 20, 2025.
This significant sale occurs amidst a period of mixed signals in the market, with recent United States spot Bitcoin ETFs experiencing outflows while institutions continue to accumulate Bitcoin. Gunden's decision may signal a potential generational shift in Bitcoin ownership, moving from individual holders to regulated financial institutions, a transition that could contribute to increasing market volatility.
Market Performance and Technical Indicators
As of November 20, 2025, Bitcoin is trading at $91,620, marking a 10.42% decrease over the past seven days. The cryptocurrency briefly dipped below $89,000 earlier this week, its lowest point in seven months. Bitcoin has seen a significant decline of approximately 27.26% from its October high of nearly $126,198, impacting the overall cryptocurrency market capitalization, which has fallen by more than $1.2 trillion from its mid-month peak.
Market analysts attribute this downturn to fading expectations for Federal Reserve interest rate cuts and the confirmation of a "death cross" technical pattern for Bitcoin, both suggesting potential for further price declines.
Death Cross Confirmed, 365-Day Average Breached
Gunden's final transfer, involving 2,499 BTC valued at approximately $228 million at current prices, concluded a divestment that began on October 21, 2025. This information was revealed through on-chain data provided by Arkham Intelligence.
The whale, who was featured in a 2013 New York Times article detailing in-person Bitcoin transactions, built his substantial Bitcoin holdings through trades on early cryptocurrency exchanges such as Mt. Gox and Tradehill. Arkham ranks him as the eighth-richest individual in the cryptocurrency space, with an estimated net worth of around $561 million before these sales.
Analysts at Glassnode suggest that such sales are characteristic of late-cycle profit-taking and do not indicate panic selling. However, the timing of Gunden's sale has caused concern among retail investors. CryptoQuant's Bull Score Index, which aggregates various on-chain metrics, fell to 20 out of 100 last week. This is its lowest reading in the current cycle and a level that has historically preceded extended downturns in previous years. Currently, all 10 components of the index are trading below their respective trends, signaling broad market weakness.
Bitcoin's descent below its 365-day moving average of $102,000 has further dampened the market outlook. This level had previously acted as support during earlier corrections in 2025, but its breach marked the beginning of the 2022 bear market.
On-chain data indicates a notable increase in spot accumulation by mid-sized wallets, those holding between 1 to 1,000 BTC. These wallets have collectively increased their daily accumulation to a range of $5-10 billion per day. This trend suggests some reallocation away from leveraged positions. Meanwhile, large holders like Gunden appear to be rotating their assets into more diversified or tax-efficient vehicles, such as ETFs.
Institutions Now Own 40% of All Spot Bitcoin ETFs
Despite the recent price decline and ETF outflows, institutional ownership of United States spot Bitcoin ETFs has reached an all-time high, now comprising 40% of total assets under management (AUM). This represents a significant increase from 27% in Q2 2024, according to the latest SEC 13F filings from over 1,119 companies managing more than $100 million in assets.
It is important to note that this figure does not capture the complete trend, as it excludes smaller institutions. The data highlights Bitcoin's growing integration into mainstream investment portfolios. BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) currently holds 85% of the reported institutional positions, including a substantial $443 million stake from Harvard Management Co.
However, short-term flows present a different picture. Data from Farside Investors shows that as of November 19, 2025, there have been $3 billion in net outflows, marking the worst monthly total on record. This includes a significant single-day exit of $523 million from IBIT on Tuesday and the second-largest redemption day ever, worth $463 million, which occurred on November 14, 2025.
Hedge funds have been a primary driver of this selling activity, engaging in profit-taking and basis trading strategies, which contributed to a 12% quarter-over-quarter decrease in ETF AUM to $33.6 billion in Q2.
“Institutional ownership continues rising to new highs despite retail fears and large-scale selling by ETF shareholders,” stated Bitcoin analyst Root in a recent commentary.
Filings from Q1 2025 revealed that advisors have reclaimed 50% of holdings from hedge funds, which consequently reduced their exposure by 32%. Corporate treasuries, adopting strategies similar to Strategy's model, have added over 2 million BTC year-to-date. Strategy itself holds 649,870 BTC as of November 20, 2025.
This evolving landscape, characterized by whales divesting and distributing their holdings while corporate institutions consolidate, has the potential to broaden Bitcoin's ownership base and contribute to greater market stability over time.