TL;DR
- AAVE whales added roughly 190,000 tokens since September 28 as Aave V4 activity expanded.
- UNI holders accumulated about 1.13 million tokens despite a price pullback toward $8.45.
- MOVR surged nearly 80%, with top-address balances rising more than 11%, signaling stronger speculative demand.
Crypto whales are entering October with fresh positions in three altcoins, but the buying patterns differ sharply. Aave, Uniswap, and Moonriver are showing signs of accumulation as traders assess liquidity, DeFi activity, and the broader macro backdrop. On-chain data from Santiment and Nansen points to growing interest from large holders, giving these tokens added attention heading into the fourth quarter.
AAVE Whales Accumulate As V4 Expands
AAVE shows the clearest accumulation among the three. Wallets holding between 100,000 and 1 million AAVE added about 190,000 tokens since September 28, worth roughly $30 million at recent prices. Much of that buying occurred as AAVE approached $176, while balances then remained relatively stable during the pullback, suggesting large holders continued to maintain their exposure.
Aave V4 crossed $400 million active loans. pic.twitter.com/Er2Ztop4wM
— Aave (@aave) September 29, 2026
The timing also aligns with strong activity across Aave V4. The latest data shows roughly $401 million in borrowed funds, while total supplied assets have reached about $1.33 billion. Aave’s new Hub-and-Spoke architecture is expanding across several networks, while tokenized-stock collateral on Base is adding another use case for decentralized borrowing. Growing utility could strengthen the case for continued whale interest if DeFi activity keeps expanding.
Uniswap And Moonriver Offer Different Whale Signals
UNI is showing a more defensive accumulation pattern. Large wallets added around 1.13 million UNI since September 28, worth approximately $10 million, even as the token declined from $9.66 toward $8.45. That suggests some large holders are using price weakness to rebuild exposure, although their balances remain below earlier September levels. A separate 1.37 million UNI transfer to Wintermute on September 28 also shows that large-holder activity remains active, although such transfers do not prove a sale.
MOVR represents the higher-risk trade. Moonriver jumped nearly 80% in 24 hours, while Nansen data showed balances held by the top 100 addresses on one tracked contract increasing by more than 11%. With a market capitalization near $22 million, relatively modest capital flows can produce significant price swings. The accumulation therefore reflects momentum as much as conviction, making MOVR considerably more sensitive to shifts in speculative demand.
