Cryptocurrency whales have become active again in the tokenized gold market. This week, an anomalous surge in outflows of Tether Gold (XAUT) from centralized exchanges was recorded, indicating the formation of a long-term accumulation position by major players. Investment company Abraxas Capital withdrew approximately 3,931 XAUT (about $15.96 million) from four major trading platforms at once, and this is just the tip of the iceberg.
According to blockchain analytics data, the distribution of outflows is as follows: 760.244 XAUT ($3.09 million) left Bitfinex, 940.207 XAUT ($3.82 million) left OKX, 230 XAUT ($934,000) left Bybit, and the largest tranche of 2,001 XAUT ($8.12 million) was withdrawn from Binance. Concurrently, an anonymous wallet (0xD20E) resumed accumulating XAUT after a three-year hiatus, accumulating 953 tokens worth about $3.93 million over the past three days.
Aggregated data on XAUT flows confirms the scale of the trend. Over the past 24 hours, the net outflow of tokens from exchanges reached $17.4 million — approximately 16 times the daily average. Looking at the weekly dynamics, the figures are even more impressive: over seven days, the net outflow exceeded $34.1 million, which is four times the average weekly value.
Such behavior by large holders is traditionally interpreted as a signal for accumulation. When whales transfer assets to personal custody, it indicates their intention to hold the position in the medium or long term, rather than taking profits in the near future. Notably, a similar picture is observed with Paxos Gold (PAXG) — demand for tokenized gold is growing everywhere.
However, not all signals are unequivocally bullish. Nansen data shows that amid purchases, there is also significant redistribution of assets. Two of the largest tracked wallets (0x77134c and 0x28c6c0) have reduced their balances by more than 5,000 XAUT each over the past 30 days. This creates some pressure and somewhat weakens the bullish sentiment formed by the exchange outflows.
My view: The current dynamics of XAUT are a classic example of divergence between retail and institutional behavior. While some major players are increasing their positions, others are taking profits after the recent rise in gold prices. The key catalyst for further movement will be signals from the U.S. Federal Reserve and the geopolitical situation. If the macroeconomic backdrop continues to push investors toward safe-haven assets, we may see further growth in demand for tokenized gold, despite local sell-offs.