Bitcoin Price Tops $85K as PCE Cools, Whales Add 41K BTC

Bitcoin’s price movement continues to draw investors’ attention, surging another 1.6% in the last few hours after US PCE inflation appears to be cooling off. Bitcoin whale entities have already begun heavy accumulation, scooping up more than 41,000 BTC in just the last ten days. On the other hand, spot Bitcoin ETFs have shown a solid recovery, from negative $5 billion in July to positive $1 billion now.

Whales Support Bitcoin Price Action Accumulating 41,025 BTC

Following the late August and September rally, Bitcoin price has been holding around the $85,000 level firmly. Thanks to the whale entities that have continued with strong accumulation in recent times.

Bitcoin wallets holding between 10 and 10,000 BTC accumulated 41,025 BTC over the past 10 days, reported Santiment. As a result, these whales have raised their combined holdings to 13.64 million BTC, or 67.93% of the total supply.

The analytics platform said that these large investors classified as whales and sharks, have reached their highest levels since the mid-August rally. Historically, Bitcoin and the broader crypto market have tended to perform better during periods of accumulation.

Meanwhile, wallets holding less than 0.01 BTC have remained largely unchanged. It shows that retail participation is largely flat for now. This divergence between Bitcoin whales and retailers would be something to watch for.

Bitcoin Price Prediction: BTC Put Options Drop After PCE Inflation Data

As per the CoinGeckco data, Bitcoin price gained 2% in the last 24 hours, surging past $85,000 again. The recent push comes as US PCE inflation for August showed signs of cooling.

Over the last month, PCE inflation eased to 3.4%, below market expectations of 3.7%. Core PCE inflation also came in lower than forecast at 3.0%, compared with expectations of 3.3%.

July’s headline and core PCE readings were both revised down by 30 basis point. Following this data, the expectations of an interest rate hike in October has declined. Overall market development has pushed Bitcoin prices and the broader crypto market higher over the last few hours.

Crypto analyst CW said bearish positioning in the BTC options market has eased as Bitcoin price rebounds. According to CW, call options currently hold an advantage through the end of the year. The analyst added that options-market influence is now nearly on par with that of the futures market.

Analysts at 10x Research noted that the Bitcoin price could see a strong upside move in October. The research firm said it entered August expecting the month to confirm that Bitcoin’s bear-market low was in place. Its cycle indicator suggested the market was coiled for a sharp move higher.

According to 10x Research, Bitcoin rallied after news broke on August 19 that U.S. federal debt had exceeded $40 trillion, reaching $80,000 within a week. The price then retreated to $76,000 amid concerns about a hawkish Federal Reserve.

However, within a week of that, Bitcoin price reached $86,000 as Fed Chair Kevin Warsh hinted at a more accommodative monetary policy going ahead. 10x Research said Bitcoin tends to move sharply when a catalyst emerges rather than advance gradually. They noted that October has always been a month rich in catalysts.

Spot Bitcoin ETFs Show Strong Recovery

U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs attracted $2.4 billion in net inflows in the week ending September 25, marking their largest weekly intake since October 2025. The inflows lifted year-to-date net flows to $1 billion, reversing the $5 billion in cumulative outflows recorded at the end of Jul, noted the Kobeissi Letter.

The funds added another $66.2 million on September 29, extending their inflow streak to nine consecutive sessions. BlackRock’s IBIT led with $51.1 million in inflows, followed by ARK 21Shares’ ARKB with $33.2 million. Bitwise’s BITB recorded $18.1 million in outflows.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice. Macroeconomic expectations, derivatives positioning and Bitcoin prices can change rapidly.