Thomas Daniels
A well-known crypto analyst has ignited a divisive discussion within the Bitcoin community, asserting that many Bitcoin OGs—early whales—are seeing their conviction waver as institutional adoption gains traction.
Scott Melker (The Wolf of All Street) recently posted on X that “many of the most ardent early whales have seen their faith shaken and have been selling at these prices.” According to Melker, institutional participation has transformed Bitcoin into what it was initially meant to hedge against.
Melker stressed that he does not necessarily endorse these views, but is simply relaying what he has observed—triggering a broader debate over what rising institutional interest means for Bitcoin’s foundational identity.
Mike Alfred, founder and managing partner of Alpine Fox, expressed rare dissent with Melker. Alfred emphasized that selling decisions often hinge on personal circumstances unrelated to Bitcoin’s protocol:
“People make a personal decision to sell some or all their coins for myriad reasons that have nothing to do with the asset or protocol.”
He added philosophically: “Everyone dies. At some point, investment returns become irrelevant.”
Notable early adopters have publicly disclosed their Bitcoin dispositions. Willy Woo informed Cointelegraph Magazine that he sold most of his Bitcoin to invest in Bitcoin infrastructure, anticipating higher returns. Meanwhile, PlanB revealed in February that he shifted from holding BTC to investing via spot Bitcoin ETFs for simpler asset management.
Countering the skepticism, Dave Weisberger argued that institutional involvement is necessary for wider public adoption. He noted:
“There is NO path to a Bitcoin standard without adoption by the public through legacy institutions controlling the fiat system AND the distribution of OG‑held Bitcoin to those entities.”
Supporting this inclusive view, Crypto Mags asserted that:
“Bitcoin is for everyone. Everyone INCLUDES enemies, governments, and Wall Street.”
Bitwise Invest’s CIO, Matt Hougan, acknowledged Melker’s caution but reaffirmed Bitcoin’s revolutionary nature:
“It’s the first global money backed, not by the state and the threat of violence, but by logic and community.”
He closed by saluting early investors and exhorting continued innovation:
“Respect to the early whales, and let’s keep building. The world needs Bitcoin more than ever.”
This debate comes on the heels of a blockbuster transaction in which an early Bitcoin investor moved 80,000 BTC through Galaxy Digital—one of the largest single‐notional transfers in digital asset history.
