MARA Holdings moves $81M in BTC, is Bitcoin price at risk?

The transaction was recorded approximately 10 hours before the Arkham Intelligence screenshot shared in the post. Blockchain records showed the receiving address labeled Galaxy Digital (bc1qv), while the sending address was identified as MARA Miner (32i1m).

Although Lookonchain described the movement as a potential sale, the available transaction data does not establish whether Galaxy Digital executed a sale on MARA’s behalf or received the Bitcoin for another purpose.

Galaxy Digital provides institutional cryptocurrency trading, asset management and other financial services. Transfers to its wallets can involve trading activity, custody arrangements or other transactions.

Lookonchain did not provide evidence confirming that the transferred Bitcoin had been sold on the open market.

MARA Holdings Bitcoin transfer follows earlier asset sales

MARA, formerly known as Marathon Digital Holdings, operates Bitcoin mining facilities and maintains a corporate Bitcoin treasury.

The company has previously sold portions of its Bitcoin holdings while continuing to mine and accumulate new coins.

In its second quarter 2026 shareholder letter, MARA disclosed that it held 35,577 BTC as of June 30. During the quarter, the company sold 2,213 BTC and had another 4,742 BTC deployed through lending arrangements.

Those figures established that MARA had been using part of its Bitcoin treasury for activities beyond holding newly mined coins.

The latest movement of 996.105 BTC was equivalent to roughly 2.8% of the company’s June 30 reported holdings, although its actual treasury balance may have changed since that reporting date.

Bitcoin miners commonly face operating expenses tied to electricity, equipment, facility maintenance and financing. Some operators sell mined Bitcoin or use treasury assets to meet those obligations, while others retain more of their production.

MARA’s previous sales do not establish the purpose of the October 9 transfer. No transaction-specific explanation from the company was available in the material reviewed.

MARA has used Bitcoin reserves to finance operations and expansion

MARA’s reported Bitcoin movement follows several large treasury transactions earlier in 2026, including sales, collateral arrangements and transfers to institutional counterparties.

In August, crypto.news reported that the company had sold 23,093 Bitcoin for approximately $1.63 billion during the first six months of the year.

MARA used proceeds from those sales to fund operations, support investments and manage liquidity. Its Bitcoin holdings stood at 35,577 BTC at the end of June, compared with 49,951 BTC a year earlier.

The company’s second quarter financial results showed revenue of $174.9 million, down 27% from the previous year, alongside a net loss of $611.3 million.

Bitcoin production reached 2,422 BTC during the quarter, while the company reported an energized hashrate of 70.3 EH/s.

MARA subsequently pledged 18,750 BTC as initial collateral for $600 million in new borrowing from Coinbase Credit and Two Prime Lending in August.

The two lenders each provided $300 million in new funding. MARA said the proceeds could support general corporate purposes, including part of the financing for its planned Long Ridge Energy and Power acquisition.

The company has been directing capital toward energy infrastructure, artificial intelligence and high performance computing facilities while maintaining its Bitcoin mining business.

Earlier in August, Lookonchain identified another 6,000 BTC transfer from MARA to Two Prime, valued at approximately $384.6 million at the time.

The analytics firm specifically cautioned that the movement did not necessarily represent a sale and could have involved asset management activities.

A similar question arose in June when Lookonchain suggested MARA had purchased 1,000 BTC through FalconX. VanEck’s head of digital assets research, Matthew Sigel, subsequently disputed the purchase claim, saying the transaction likely involved the return of collateral from a Bitcoin backed loan.

MARA has not provided a transaction-specific explanation for the latest 996.105 BTC movement in the sources reviewed.

Is Bitcoin price at risk of further losses?

Bitcoin price remained under pressure on October 9, trading near $82,300 after several days of losses, while technical indicators suggested that sellers still had an advantage in the short term.

BTC had fallen from around $85,578 on October 6 to $81,706 at the October 8 daily close. The cryptocurrency touched an intraday low near $80,514 before recovering some of its losses.

At the time of writing, the 14-day Relative Strength Index was around 49, indicating neutral momentum but leaving room for further selling before Bitcoin enters oversold territory.

Bitcoin was trading below its 10-day and 20-day exponential moving averages at $83,734 and $83,226, respectively. Both indicators carried sell signals, suggesting that buyers would need to reclaim these levels to ease the immediate downward pressure.

The MACD remained below its signal line, indicating that bearish momentum had not fully faded despite the recent price recovery.

If selling pressure continues, Bitcoin could revisit its recent low near $80,514. A sustained break below that level could expose the 50-day EMA near $79,742, followed by a stronger support area around $76,638.

However, the longer-term trend remained relatively stable, with BTC holding above its 50-day and 200-day EMAs. Both indicators continued to carry buy signals, with the latter positioned near $75,302.

On the upside, Bitcoin would need to reclaim the $83,226 to $83,734 region to improve its short-term technical position. A sustained recovery above these averages could open the way toward the next resistance level near $87,061.

The reported MARA Holdings Bitcoin transfer could raise concerns about potential selling pressure, although the available onchain data has not confirmed that the transferred assets were sold on the open market.