What are cryptocurrency whales buying ahead of the FOMC meeting?

The upcoming meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) on September 16-17, 2025, is one of the most anticipated events of the year. The market is pricing in the high odds of the first interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve (Fed) in 2025. The cryptocurrency market has seen a slight adjustment over the past two days, indicating that investors have started to adjust, but the "whales" have a different approach.

While retailers remain cautious and prefer to hold cash for potential purchases in the event of an expected fall in interest rates, large investors are quietly buying altcoins they expect to benefit if the Fed signals a shift to a loosening policy. Here are three tokens that cryptocurrency "whales" are buying ahead of the FOMC meeting. One of them has even seen strong buying activity.

Cardano (ADA)

Cryptocurrency "whales" have continuously strengthened their position in ADA during September. On-chain data shows that since September 9, holders of more than 1 billion ADA have increased their holdings from 1.88 billion to 1.94 billion tokens, while those holding between 10 million and 1 billion ADA have increased their balances from 3.75 billion to 3.81 billion. In total, this is an increase of about 120 million ADA, worth approximately 103 million dollars at the current ADA price of nearly 0.86 dollars.

Cryptocurrency whales are actively BUYING ADA | Source: SantimentWhales started buying when the price was climbing close to $0.95, indicating they are purchasing as the price rises. More importantly, they did not sell during the recent price drop, showing confidence that the FOMC decision could act as a bullish catalyst.

The price chart shows that ADA is trading in an ascending triangle with support near $0.85. A breakout above $0.87–$0.90 could pave the way for $0.96 and ultimately the $1.00 area. The bullish scenario will be invalidated if ADA falls below $0.80.

ADA Price Analysis | Source: TradingViewBull-Bear Strength Index (BBP), measuring the strength of buyers against sellers, has switched between green and red in recent sessions. This reflects the hesitation of retail investors, but also highlights why the position of whales is important. While smaller traders are hesitant, the “whales” are quietly accumulating, effectively using this area as an entry point before the Fed is expected to cut interest rates.

Chainlink (LINK)

Cryptocurrency "whales" have been continuously building their Chainlink positions ahead of the FOMC meeting, where the market expects a significant policy change. Since September 4, the holdings of whales have increased from 538.54 million LINK to 574.41 million LINK. With the current LINK price at $23.50, that's about $843 million in new accumulation.

Whales are buying LINK | Source: SantimentThis buying began when LINK fell below $22 and has continued even as the price rose higher. The "whales" are not forced to sell due to short-term dips or tempted to sell when the price recovers; instead, they have continued to accumulate and maintain their holdings. This stable position indicates confidence that the coming weeks, especially the Fed's decision, may provide a breakout opportunity.

On the chart, the price of Chainlink is forming an inverse head and shoulders pattern, a classic bullish reversal. To confirm this setup, LINK needs to break the neckline at around $25.96. If a clean breakout occurs, the minimum target will be close to $30.65. This could be the technical signal that the "whales" are waiting for as they buy in.

LINK Price Analysis | Source: TradingViewHowever, this structure will fail if the LINK price corrects too far. A drop below $22.91 will weaken the bullish scenario. Until then, the "whales" seem to be positioning early, betting that the combination of the easing FOMC meeting and the completed breakout could push LINK up strongly.

Ethena (ENA)

The ENA "whales" have quietly built their Ethena position (ENA) in the days leading up to the FOMC meeting. The project's synthetic dollar stablecoin, USDe, competes with traditional dollar yields, so changes in U.S. interest rate policy could indirectly affect demand. This connection helps explain why cryptocurrency "whales" buying before the FOMC meeting have focused on ENA.

The group holding between 100 million and 1 billion ENA held approximately 4.46 billion tokens on September 10 when the price of ENA was around $0.81. Since then, their reserves have increased to 5.66 billion, even as the price fell to $0.69. This means that the “whales” have added about 1.2 billion tokens, worth approximately $828 million at the current level.

Importantly, they began buying near the local peak and have continued to accumulate throughout the correction, indicating stable buying rather than panic selling.

Crypto whales are buying ENA as the price falls | Source: SantimentOn the chart, ENA has dropped sharply, losing about 12% in the past week and nearly 10% in the last 24 hours. Nevertheless, this token is showing hidden bullish divergence on the RSI (Relative Strength Index), which measures momentum by comparing recent gains and losses.

ENA Price Analysis | Source: TradingViewThe price has formed higher lows between September 4 and 16, while the RSI has created lower lows. This indicates that selling pressure is weakening even as the token decreases in value. Currently, ENA is trading at $0.69. A recovery to $0.73 at the daily close could open up a recovery opportunity to $0.80 and $0.87. However, if ENA drops below $0.60, the bullish setup will turn bearish. The "whales" seem to be betting that divergence will occur, positioning ahead of the FOMC meeting as a potential catalyst.

Mr. Teacher