Exchange terms may seem incomprehensible and complex, but that's not entirely true. Large exchange players are called whales — it's just an analogy with the largest mammals in the water. A cryptocurrency whale is considered to be a holder of a substantial number of tokens.

Why Do Other Market Participants Watch Whales?

The actions of cryptocurrency whales serve as a kind of indicator:

However, it's not wise to trust whales one hundred percent.

Should You Be Wary of Whales?

The whales themselves are not dangerous; they are ordinary people with a large number of crypto coins. Only their actions in the market can lead to losses for other investors. There is a theory that states that most tokens are in the hands of whales who skillfully manipulate exchange rates. This is not entirely true, but they can exert influence:

Indeed, whales have some influence on the market. But it's not worth overestimating them; news background or world events have a much greater impact on cryptocurrencies.

How Many Tokens Are Needed to Be Considered a Whale?

Bitcoin emission is limited — only 21 million bitcoins can exist in the world. The largest owner has concentrated 5% of the emission or about one million bitcoins in their hands. Less significant whales own one or two percent of the bitcoin emission, which is enough to conduct market manipulations.