CryptoCurrency
How Crypto Whales Are Driving Tether Gold Accumulation
Crypto whales are aggressively accumulating tokenized gold, with on-chain data showing a surge in large purchases of Tether Gold (XAUT) and Paxos Gold (PAXG).
The surge comes as spot gold continues to print fresh all-time highs, first breaching Goldman Sachs’ target and now headed toward Bank of America and Jefferies’ targets.
Crypto Whales Accumulate Tether Gold as Tokenized Bullion Demand Surges
As of this writing, gold was trading at $5,585, after Goldman Sachs and UBS’s $5,400 2026 price target was realized in record time.
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Now, the precious metal is just shy of Morgan Stanley’s $5,700 forecast, and the $6,000 and $6,600 predicted by the Bank of America and Jefferies, respectively.
Meanwhile, blockchain analytics firm Lookonchain reported multiple high-value transactions during the final week of January, pointing to sustained whale interest in gold-backed tokens.
On January 27:
- Wallet 0xbe4C withdrew 1,959 XAUT worth $9.97 million from Bybit and Gate
- Wallet 0x0F67 pulled 559 XAUT ($2.83 million) from MEXC.
- Wallet, 0x1b7D, withdrew a combined 194.4 XAUT ($993,000) and 106.2 PAXG ($538,000) from MEXC on the same day.
The accumulation trend continued as gold prices pushed higher.
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On January 28:
- Wallet 0x6Afa spent $5.95 million to acquire 1,137 PAXG over a two-day period.
- A newly created wallet, 0x0E4F, withdrew 800 XAUT worth $4.22 million from Bybit just hours earlier.
- On January 5
- Wallet 0x8c08 spent $8.49 million to buy 1,948 XAUT at an average price of $4,357.
Recently, BeInCrypto reported a sizable XAUT purchase, featuring among the largest tokenized gold movements in recent months. A single trader on the Bybit exchange deposited 7 million USDT and withdrew 843 XAUT, worth $4.17 million.
This highlights the growing interest in tokenized gold as a hedge against fiat volatility.
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Negative Exchange Flows and Rising Market Cap Signal Long-Term Accumulation
Beyond individual transactions, broader on-chain trends reinforce the accumulation narrative. Data from Arkham Intelligence shows that exchange flows for Tether Gold have remained net negative for the past seven days.
This signals persistent withdrawals from centralized platforms. Historically, sustained negative exchange flows are associated with long-term holding behavior rather than short-term trading.
It suggests that investors are positioning for continued upside or using tokenized gold as a defensive allocation.
Market data further highlights XAUT’s momentum. According to CoinGecko, Tether Gold’s market capitalization has climbed to a new all-time high of $2.9 billion. It has been rising steadily throughout the past month before accelerating sharply in the final week of January.
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The increase reflects both higher gold prices and growing demand for tokenized exposure to physical bullion.
The surge in on-chain activity comes as Tether itself expands its footprint in the physical gold market. BeInCrypto reported that more than one ton of gold is transported each week into a high-security vault owned by Tether, located in a former Cold War-era bunker.
The facility is now considered the largest known private gold vault in the world outside of banks and governments. This positions the stablecoin issuer as a significant player in the global bullion industry.
Together, these developments point to a convergence between traditional safe-haven demand and crypto-native capital.
Amid macro uncertainty, geopolitical tensions, and expectations around monetary policy, whales appear to be increasingly favoring tokenized gold as a liquid, blockchain-based proxy for physical holdings.
With exchange balances falling, market capitalization rising, and large wallets steadily accumulating, XAUT’s recent activity suggests that tokenized gold is emerging as a key bridge between crypto markets and the renewed global gold frenzy.
