On-chain data from Santiment shows that 52 large Shiba Inu (SHIB) holders sold their positions during a recent 37% price surge. The sell-off left retail buyers who piled in at the top now sitting on losses, according to the analytics firm.
The Whale Exit
Santiment's wallet tracking identified 52 whales — addresses holding significant amounts of SHIB — that cashed out as the token's price climbed. The exact timing of the sales isn't public, but the data suggests the whales took profits during the rally's peak. SHIB's price jumped 37% in a short period, drawing in traders hoping for more gains. Instead, the whales moved their tokens to exchanges or other wallets, a classic sign of distribution.
Retail Buyers Trapped
Retail investors who bought SHIB during the surge are now stuck with positions bought near the top. The price has since pulled back, though Santiment didn't specify the exact drop. The pattern is familiar in crypto: large holders use liquidity from rallies to exit, while smaller traders chase momentum and end up holding the bag. On-chain data like this gives a clear view of who's buying and who's selling.
What the Data Reveals
Santiment's report doesn't name the whales or their motives. But the numbers speak for themselves — 52 whales sold during a 37% move. That's a concentrated sell-off, not a gradual distribution. For retail traders, the lesson is that whale activity can flip a rally into a trap. The data also shows that SHIB's price action is still heavily influenced by a few large players, a common trait among meme coins and smaller-cap tokens.
For now, the on-chain record shows a clear transfer of wealth from latecomers to early whales. Whether SHIB can attract new buyers to reverse the trend remains an open question.
