Whale Delta

Compare whale versus retail trading activity in a visual scatter plot to see who is really driving the market.

What is Whale Delta?

Whale Delta separates trading activity into whale and retail categories, then plots them against each other in a 4-quadrant scatter plot. Each quadrant represents a different market dynamic: whales buying while retail sells, whales selling while retail buys, both buying, or both selling. This separation reveals whether smart money and retail traders agree or disagree on direction.

The tool uses dynamic auto-detection to adjust the whale threshold based on current market volatility. In quiet markets, a smaller trade qualifies as whale-sized. During high-volatility periods, the threshold increases to filter out noise. This ensures the whale classification stays meaningful regardless of market conditions.

Whale Delta also includes correlation analysis, showing which coins are moving in sync with whale activity. When whale buying in one asset correlates with price moves in another, it can reveal sector-wide accumulation strategies that would be invisible from looking at a single coin.

Key Concepts

• Whale Buying / Retail Selling: The “smart money accumulation” quadrant — whales are positioning while retail exits. Historically one of the strongest forward-looking signals.
• Whale Selling / Retail Buying: The “distribution” quadrant — whales are offloading to retail buyers. Often precedes a decline.
• Dynamic Threshold: The automatically adjusted size cutoff that separates whale orders from retail, adapting to current volatility.
• Correlation Analysis: Measures how closely whale activity in one coin tracks with price movement in other coins.

How to Use Whale Delta

1. Open Whale Delta from the sidebar under Whale Tools
2. Select the symbol or market you want to analyze
3. The 4-quadrant scatter plot displays immediately, plotting whale activity on one axis and retail on the other
4. Identify which quadrant the current reading falls in — this tells you the current dynamic between whale and retail positioning
5. Review the correlation panel to see which coins are moving with whale flow

What to Look For

• Bullish signals: Readings consistently landing in the “Whale Buying / Retail Selling” quadrant signal accumulation by smart money. This is especially powerful when it occurs after a significant price decline, suggesting whales are buying the dip while retail panics.
• Bearish signals: Readings in the “Whale Selling / Retail Buying” quadrant indicate distribution. If this pattern persists at elevated price levels, whales may be offloading positions to retail euphoria.
• Key patterns: A transition from the “Both Selling” quadrant to “Whale Buying / Retail Selling” often marks the early stages of a bottom. Sudden shifts between quadrants can signal a regime change in market dynamics.
• Combine with: On-Chain Analytics for blockchain-level confirmation of whale movements, Orderflow Screener for real-time flow validation, CVD Chart to see if net volume delta confirms the whale direction

Supported Exchanges

Tips

• The strongest signals come from persistent readings in one quadrant, not single data points — look for sustained whale accumulation or distribution over multiple periods
• Use the correlation analysis to find coins where whale activity in a major asset (like BTC) might predict moves in smaller altcoins
• Whale Delta tells you what large players are doing, but not why — always combine with broader market context to understand the reasoning behind their positioning