Short-Term Holder (STH)
ON-CHAINDEFINITION
Coins acquired within the last 155 days — and by extension, the people holding them. This cohort is the market's fast money: quicker to buy on rallies and quicker to sell on fear than long-term holders.
Short-term holder supply is the mirror image of long-term holder supply: every coin belongs to one cohort or the other, and coins graduate from STH to LTH once they cross the 155-day threshold without moving. Because STH coins were bought more recently, their average cost basis sits much closer to the current price — which means this cohort is the first to show a paper loss when price drops, and the first group analysts watch for signs of panic selling.
A shrinking STH supply usually means fewer recent buyers are around to panic-sell, since most of the freely-tradable coins have already aged into long-term holder status. That condition has historically shown up alongside long-term holder capitulation near past cycle bottoms — not because the two are the same signal, but because both describe a market with few remaining sellers.
IN A SENTENCE
"Short-term holder supply just hit a record low — there are fewer recently-acquired coins left to sell into a panic."
Key facts
Common questions
Does a low STH supply guarantee a bottom?
No. It describes conditions that have coincided with past bottoms — fewer recent buyers left to sell — but it isn't a standalone prediction. Analysts read it alongside long-term holder profitability and price action, not on its own.
Why do short-term holders panic-sell more easily?
Their cost basis is closer to the current price, so a drawdown puts them underwater faster than long-term holders sitting on older, cheaper purchases. Being newer to the position also tends to mean less conviction under stress.