Dogecoin Whales Remain Quiet, What’s Going On And Is DOGE At Risk?

bitcoinistPublished on 2026-01-09Last updated on 2026-01-09

Abstract

Dogecoin started 2026 with a significant price surge, briefly reclaiming the $0.15 level after a bearish end to 2025. However, on-chain data reveals that mega whales (holders of 100M-1B DOGE) remained largely inactive during this rally, even reducing their holdings slightly. In contrast, smaller "shark" wallets (10M-100M DOGE) and mid-sized holders (1M-10M DOGE) were the primary accumulators, driving the buying pressure and increased trading volume. Despite the initial jump, DOGE has since pulled back to $0.1424, facing continued resistance at $0.15. The lack of participation from the largest whales introduces uncertainty into the meme coin's near-term outlook.

Dogecoin didn’t ease into 2026 quietly. Following several weeks of drifting and bearish price action at the end of last year, the memecoin suddenly picked up speed, jumping in the first few days of January and briefly reclaiming levels above $0.15. However, on-chain data shows that Dogecoin’s mega whales did not have a hand in the rally. These large Dogecoin holders have mostly stayed on the sidelines, avoiding both heavy buying and selling.

Dogecoin’s Whales Quiet During Recent Price Action

Dogecoin began the week with a quick burst of upside that carried the price from below $0.12 into mid-$0.15. Trading activity picked up during the move, and there was genuine buying interest. During this period, Dogecoin’s trading volume nearly tripled those seen during the last days of December, with notable examples of $3.56 billion trading volume on January 2 and $2.34 billion on January 4.

This intense trading activity briefly placed the Dogecoin price above $0.15 on January 5, a price level that has served as a resistance level that stopped the meme coin’s price action throughout December 2025. However, an interesting detail from recent on-chain analysis is how little large holders reacted to the price rally.

According to data from on-chain analytics platform Santiment, Dogecoin addresses holding 100 million to 1 billion DOGE saw their collective holdings increase into January 4, peaking around 35.8 billion DOGE, before a decline beginning on January 5.

Starting on January 5, this group began trimming exposure, and even as Dogecoin’s price action continued climbing to the $0.15 level, their combined holdings fell to roughly 34.59 billion DOGE by January 6. Since then, balances in this cohort have largely remained flat.

Dogecoin Large Holder Distribution. Source: Santiment

Sharks Doing Most Of The Bullish Work

On the other hand, Dogecoin sharks, i.e., wallets holding between 10 million and 100 million DOGE showed a much stronger appetite. After a brief pullback between January 2 and January 4, this group returned to accumulation during Dogecoin’s push higher. That buying trend has continued through the rest of the week, lifting their collective holdings to about 17.63 billion DOGE at the time of writing.

Smaller large holders in the 1 million to 10 million DOGE range followed a similar pattern, though with more hesitation early on. Activity in this group increased at the start of the week, followed by a dip around January 7. That decline was short-lived, however, as balances rebounded on January 8 and 9, rising to roughly 10.9 billion DOGE at the time of writing.

As it stands, Dogecoin’s price action seems to be taking a pause from the rally and is back to facing resistance at $0.15. The meme coin is now trading at $0.1424, and the lack of clear commitment from large whales is also keeping the outlook uncertain.

DOGE price fails to hold up | Source: DOGEUSDT on Tradingview.com

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