Cryptovest has reported unusual activity in the crypto market involving major Bitcoin trading platform, BitMEX. This is a digital wallet that stores digital tokens, a major platform on which most of the trades involving Bitcoin are traded. The digital wallet is reported to have received coins from about 17 different wallets totaling to “a hair above 18000 BTC”.

What is more interesting about this transaction is that not only does it involve a very large number of coins but it also comes at a time when Bitcoin was just recovering from major losses against the US dollar.

Manipulating the market

Per the report, the total dollar value of that transaction is in the region of $114 million. Although this may not represent even 0.1% of the total coins in circulation, it is a major transaction that can affect market sentiment. In this view, there has been a fiery storm on Twitter where the users have accused BitMEX of attempting to manipulate the market.

Some users have not spared their rage as they demonise the digital wallet for shorting the bitcoins. Others have speculated that the trading platform may be angling for the opportunity to corner the bitcoin market.

Consolidating coins

However, industry sources say otherwise. According to Cryptovest, some analysts observe that the move is legitimate and may be geared towards a consolidation of coins to a cold storage wallet. This is the situation where the coins are locked down for “a worst-case-scenario”. Per the Cryptovest report, this is an activity that has been seen before and that it is not outlandish.

It has also been reported that the activity could be aimed towards providing liquidity for the trading platform. Whether this is the true representation of BitMEX’s intention or not, remains to be seen. However, analysts have argued against the claims by some social media users that have accused the platform of trying to orchestrate an exit scam. The analysts have pointed to the two scenarios arguing that the volatility that is being witnessed at the moment may be the inspiration behind the digital wallet trying to insulate itself from the possible adverse effects of Bitcoin dipping below the $6000 mark it hit recently.