Panic among 'shrimps': how retail investors reacted to the Bitcoin crash
In the current market cycle, retail investors have behaved surprisingly quietly. Their activity gradually faded as the market rose. We are talking about wallet holders with a balance of less than 1 BTC, affectionately called 'shrimps' in the crypto community. This group always reacts sharply to price fluctuations, but this time they remained in the shadows for a long time while the market was rising.
However, the recent sharp price drop caused them to wake up. The sudden fall of Bitcoin triggered a surge in activity: small players began to massively transfer their assets to the Binance exchange. It seems the correction caused a real wave of panic, making people frantically look for the 'sell' button on the most accessible platform.
The numbers speak for themselves:
On February 5, the inflow of BTC from 'shrimps' to Binance exceeded 1000 BTC per day.
For comparison: the average monthly figure was only 365 BTC.
Such excitement has not been seen since July 2025, when Bitcoin was storming historical highs. Interestingly, the same transaction volumes can indicate both euphoria and wild stress — it all depends on the context.
The beginning of the month clearly made investors nervous. High volatility takes a toll on the psyche and pushes for impulsive decisions, often leading to capitulation. Nevertheless, the market quickly recovered. After a brief drop below $60,000, the price of Bitcoin bounced back and is now trading around $71,000.
This rebound calmed retail players. Coin flows to exchanges returned to normal, and selling pressure in this segment noticeably decreased.