CryptoQuant’s analytical evolution from Kimchi premiums to ETF flows

On-chain signals and market volatility

Ki Young Ju founded CryptoQuant in 2018. The Seoul-headquartered platform tracks exchange flows, miner behavior, and whale activity. In 2019, traders used the Kimchi premium to identify Korean buying pressure. This metric shows the price gap between South Korean exchanges and global markets. When the Kimchi premium exceeds 16%, it indicates market tops or FOMO. As of October 16, Bitcoin trades at 168.2 million KRW on Upbit, creating a 6.52% premium over Binance. Bitcoin now tests a $60,000 support zone. This price action follows a peak near $126,000 in early October when the Bull Score Index stood at 80. Since the October 10 liquidation event, that index slid to zero. The accumulation of 46,000 BTC by U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs in 2025 provides a sharp contrast to the 10,600 BTC these same funds shed during the current year, which adds complexity to current market positioning. U.S. investors remain largely absent as the Coinbase Bitcoin Price Premium stayed negative since mid-October. CryptoQuant remains the most effective tool for detecting exchange-driven volatility.

Comparison of data depth

Nansen labels over 500 million wallet addresses to track smart money and institutional flows. It provides real-time visibility of on-chain activity across 12 blockchains. Nansen provides Nansen Alpha for expert research, but the interface confuses many new users. CryptoQuant provides derivatives data, including funding rates and open interest, alongside exchange reserve metrics. Glassnode provides HODL wave segmentation and the Stablecoin Supply Ratio using 200 categorized metrics.

CryptoQuant provides API access through a prepaid credit model, which causes total costs to rise quickly once teams require higher data resolution or more alerts. CoinMetrics was acquired by Talos in July 2025. Nansen provides Smart Money Dashboards to help users identify where smart investors put their money. Nansen also provides Token God Mode and NFT Paradise to track market dynamics. Users on Nansen can access Smart Alerts to monitor major on-chain activities or use Nansen Portfolio to manage assets across different chains. Nansen also uses Smart Segments to allow users to create custom groups of crypto wallets based on token holdings or activity.

Liquidity shifts and whale behavior

Whale activity drives current market volatility. The average Bitcoin deposit size doubled from 1 BTC to 2 BTC recently. This shift suggests large holders move assets onto exchanges more than retail investors. Although U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded $221.7 million in net inflows, the apparent spot demand growth fell 93% from 1.1 million BTC in early October to just 77,000 BTC today. This drop moved demand from 1.1 million BTC to 77,000 BTC over four months. Bitcoin also broke below its 365-day moving average for the first time since March 2022. Prices also saw repeated rejections at the Traders’ Onchain Realized Price. Bitcoin is currently trading near $62,000 after hitting support at $60,000. In late June, Ether deposits to exchanges rose above 1.25 million ETH. Altcoin activity also rose with 45,000 deposit transactions recorded recently. The 60-day growth rate of Tether’s USDT market capitalization fell by $133 million, marking the first contraction since October 2023 and following a peak expansion in late 2025 after reaching its height. This contraction follows a period where the market saw a peak expansion of $15.9 billion in late October 2025. Will liquidity continue to drain from these major stablecoins? You should watch the relationship between exchange inflows and price action.