Just-In: Bhutan Govt Sells $40M Bitcoin As BTC Targets New ATH

Royal Government of Bhutan sold a total of 406 Bitcoins from its treasury, worth $40 million, as the BTC price attempts a break to new all-time highs. Over the last two months, the Butan govt has been offloading its stake at periodic intervals amid the massive Bitcoin price rally, especially after Donald Trump’s victory.

Bhutan Govt Offloads 406 Bitcoins from Holdings

As per the on-chain data from Arkham Intelligence, the Royal Government of Bhutan transferred 406 BTC, valued at approximately $40 million, to QCPCapital. The transfer has triggered widespread discussions, with many speculating it is a selling move.

The data shows that the Bhutan govt now holds 11,791 Bitcoin in its treasury which still makes it the fourth-largest government holder of BTC worldwide. The value of its Bitcoin holdings as of the current BTC price remains around $1.164 billion. Notably, Bhutan is a haven for Bitcoin miners with the government acquiring a majority of its BTC through hydro-powered mining operations.

Since the rise in Bitcoin’s price in late October, the Royal Government of Bhutan has sold 1,696 BTC, valued at approximately $139 million, at an average price of $81,999. They conducted the transactions through Binance and QCP Capital.

Where Is BTC Price Heading Next?

The development comes at a time when Bitcoin price has been struggling to overcome the $100K barrier amid a sell-off from long-term holders. During writing, the BTC price was trading 1.6% down at $98.190 with a market cap of $1,943 trillion.

Analyzing open interest (OI) for the December 27, 2024 expiration, a total of 139,960 Bitcoin options contracts will expire on December 27, per data on Deribit. QCP suggests that while a squeeze higher could occur if spot prices rise, they are less inclined to expect this. The firm observed profit-taking on long BTC-100k-C positions, with some traders rolling their positions to March (130k-150k), indicating a significant supply of upside gamma.

While Bitcoin price struggles to breach the $100K level in the short term, analysts continue to stay bullish for 2025. Standard Chartered has already predicted Bitcoin will reach $200K by the end of 2025. Also, inflows in Bitcoin ETFs and institutional buying by MicroStrategy, etc. can propel higher rallies. Besides, recent reports suggest that tech giants like Amazon and Microsoft will build their Bitcoin treasury next year.

The crypto market enters a pivotal week as attention turns to the upcoming US Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation figures. Additionally, investors will also closely watch the release of the US Producer Price Index (PPI) data.