In the past 24 hours, a whale holding approximately 16–17% of the Shiba Inu (SHIB) supply moved about 800 billion SHIB tokens (equivalent to nearly $4.9 million) to the CoinMENA exchange, according to EmberCN. The transaction was executed through multiple intermediary steps before being recorded as a deposit, while this wallet still retains approximately 95–99 trillion SHIB, valued at roughly $600 million. The massive holding size compared to the relatively small transfer amount suggests this is likely a partial allocation rather than a market exit.

Whale Activity Points to Potential Sell Pressure

Data from Arkham shows that approximately 800 billion Shiba Inu (nearly $4.9 million) was transferred from the whale’s wallet via several intermediary addresses labeled “Forwarder,” rather than being sent directly to a destination address.

在 2020 年仅使用 37.8 ETH ($13.7K) 买入 103 万亿枚 $SHIB (总量的 17.4%) 的 “榜一大哥”，过去一天时间里把 8000 亿枚 $SHIB ($491 万) 转进了 Coinmena (交易所)。

2021 年价格最高时他这 103 万亿 SHIB 价值 $91 亿。他这些币绝大部分都还没有出售，现在仍持有着高达 95.42 万亿枚 SHIB (总量的… https://t.co/d6ubSEg9Xo pic.twitter.com/38vZDcVWFO

— 余烬 (@EmberCN) April 30, 2026

According to EmberCN, the funds later converged at an address identified as a deposit wallet for the CoinMENA exchange. This move indicates that it was not an internal transfer between storage wallets, but a shift from holding to a market-ready trading state. Breaking down the transaction and distributing it across multiple wallets suggests the funds are being deployed in stages rather than a single large order — an approach commonly seen when large holders begin bringing assets to the market.

A Controlled Sell From a Dominant Holder

According to Lookonchain, this wallet has accumulated over 103 trillion SHIB since 2020, with an initial cost of only about 37.8 ETH (~$13,700), and once reached a value of over $9 billion at the 2021 market peak. To date, this address has sold approximately 4.06 trillion SHIB but still holds the majority of its position, estimated at 95–99 trillion SHIB. 

An OG whale, who once spent $13,760 to buy 103.33T $SHIB (worth $8.9B at peak), sold another 800B $SHIB($4.9M) today.

This OG spent only $13,760 to buy 103.33T $SHIB, sold 4.06T $SHIB for $37.6M over the past few years, and still holds 99.27T $SHIB($625.41M) — 16.84% of the… pic.twitter.com/F0bB0VP5t0

— Lookonchain (@lookonchain) April 30, 2026

Compared to the total holding size, the 800 billion SHIB transferred this time represents less than 1% of the holdings. This amount is equivalent to about 0.13% of the total circulating supply (~589 trillion SHIB). According to CoinMarketCap data, the 24-hour trading volume recently reached about $168 million, while the $4.9 million value accounts for only about 3%, indicating that the market currently still has the capacity to absorb this supply.

These moves suggest this is merely a controlled selling activity, likely for partial profit-taking. In other words, the whale is beginning to distribute, but there are no signs of accelerating this process yet.

Broader Market Flows Do Not Confirm Distribution

Data from CryptoQuant shows that the overall flow of SHIB in recent weeks has not tilted to one side. Exchange inflows recorded sharp spikes in April, with a peak of up to 2.5 trillion SHIB in a single day. In subsequent sessions, inflows fluctuated around 700 billion SHIB — nearly equivalent to the aforementioned whale’s amount. 

SHIB Exchange netflow. Source: CryptoQuant

At the same time, netflow data shows two-way volatility, with sessions recording net inflows of about +300 to +500 billion SHIB, interspersed with net withdrawal sessions of up to -500 billion. This development shows that the market has not yet formed a clear distribution pressure, but is still in a state of funds circulating between wallets and exchanges.

In parallel, Etherscan data shows that SHIB’s ownership structure remains highly concentrated, with the top 100 addresses holding more than 83% of the supply and the top 10 accounting for about 63%. This level of concentration makes large transactions easily attract attention, but a single move is not enough to confirm a trend without an accompanying broader shift in capital flows.

Price Holds as Supply Enters the Market

The price of Shiba Inu only fluctuated slightly after the SHIB from the whale wallet was moved to the exchange and quickly recovered, currently maintaining around the $0.0000063 zone, showing that the market has not suffered significant pressure from this supply. 

SHIB Price Chart (1D). Source: TradingView

The price remaining stable amidst potential distribution signals from the whale suggests that market liquidity is still absorbing this selling volume well. This is a notable difference from previous periods when large transactions were often accompanied by stronger volatility. This development indicates that the current market still has the ability to absorb new supply without creating significant fluctuations, even when transactions come from large holders.

Early Distribution Signals Remain Limited

On-chain data shows that the wallet holding 16-17% of the total SHIB supply has begun moving tokens to exchanges, creating potential short-term selling pressure. However, the transaction scale remains small relative to the total position, while market-wide flows have not shown a clear tilt toward the selling side.

Shiba Inu’s price has also not recorded a negative reaction, showing that the market is absorbing this supply well without significant volatility. In that context, this move is more consistent with a partial allocation rather than a signal that a large-scale distribution process has begun. In other words, this may be an early sign that large holders’ behavior is changing, but it is still too early to conclude that the SHIB market has entered a clear weakening phase.