Key Takeaways
- Metaplanet moved 1,473 BTC ($93.82 million) off an exchange on August 12, per Lookonchain.
- Hut8 followed hours later with 493 BTC ($31.36 million), lifting the total past $125 million.
- The moves come as Metaplanet’s treasury topped 43,000 BTC and Hut8’s 13,696 BTC.
Two Treasury Companies Pull Bitcoin off Exchanges
Metaplanet withdrew 1,473 BTC off an exchange, and roughly two hours later Hut8 followed with a 493 BTC withdrawal. Combined, the two transfers moved 1,966 BTC (about $125 million) out of exchange custody within a single window, all against the backdrop of a broader bitcoin price slump this summer that has put pressure on treasury companies and miners alike.
Neither company has publicly explained the specific transfers, and the move could simply mean a shift to cold storage, a custody change, or a simple financing decision. That said, it bears mentioning that when large holders move bitcoin away from exchanges, it is typically viewed as a bullish supply signal.
This reading, in particular, carries even more weight as it comes from known corporate treasuries like Metaplanet and Hut8.
Metaplanet’s Bigger Bitcoin Playbook
The Tokyo-listed firm has built one of the largest corporate bitcoin treasuries outside the United States. An early-July purchase of 2,823 BTC pushed its total holdings to 43,000 BTC, with cumulative acquisition costs near $4.09 billion, making it the third-largest public corporate bitcoin holder as of August 2026.
Moreover, Bitcoin.com News reported in April that Metaplanet’s Q1 2026 buying spree alone added 5,075 BTC, pushing its holdings past 40,177 BTC at the time (a pace the company has kept up through the summer).
The accumulation hasn’t fully translated to Metaplanet’s stock, however. Coverage this month noted the company’s shares have struggled to catch a bid even as its bitcoin vault swelled past the 43,000 BTC mark, a gap between treasury growth and market reception that has become a recurring theme for bitcoin-holding equities in 2026.
Still, Metaplanet has postured its strategy around long-term accumulation rather than trading, so an exchange withdrawal fits a pattern the company has repeated throughout the year, i.e. buy, then move coins into long-term custody.
Hut8’s Balancing Act Between Mining and Holding
Hut8 operates differently from a pure accumulation play because as a bitcoin miner and digital infrastructure company, it holds BTC both as a treasury asset and as collateral for financing. Live treasury trackers put Hut8’s total holdings at 10,278 BTC, ranking it among the 15 largest public corporate holders and representing roughly 0.065% of bitcoin’s total circulating supply.
Earlier in 2026, Hut8 refinanced a $200 million bitcoin-backed credit facility through a new deal with FalconX, cutting the interest rate from 9% to 7% and releasing roughly 3,300 BTC that had been pledged as collateral. In its second-quarter 2026 results, the company also reported carrying no general recourse debt at the parent level after converting a Coatue note, part of a broader push toward non-dilutive, project-level financing for its data center buildout. That backdrop is a reminder that not every Hut8 wallet movement points toward a straightforward buy.
Neither Metaplanet nor Hut8 has confirmed the destination of the withdrawn coins, and onchain data alone can’t distinguish a cold-storage transfer from a deal in progress. The withdrawals also land during a choppy stretch for bitcoin’s price, which traded just under $64,000 after stalling below the $65,200 level it touched earlier in the week.
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