Ethereum Reserves on Exchanges Fall to 14.5 Million Units, Lowest Since 2016
Key Facts
Ethereum reserves on the exchanges tracked by CryptoQuant fell to about 14.5 million units on November 2, 2026, returning to levels not seen since 2016, according to a report by platform contributor Amr Taha. The decline puts exchange balances at their lowest since that year, as the amount available for spot trading on these platforms has contracted. Taha said reserves had "returned to levels last seen in 2016." Binance’s balance alone fell to 3.08 million units, after peaking near 4.9 million in 2025. The simultaneous declines in total exchange reserves and Binance highlight the breadth of the balance contraction, while the size of the decline differs between the aggregate and the platform.
According to figures cited by CryptoQuant, total reserves fell from a peak of about 35 million units in 2020 to about 14.5 million on November 2, 2026. That amounts to a decline of about 20.5 million units, or 58.6% from the peak. The report said less than 42% of the balance held at the peak remains on the exchanges it tracks. This historical comparison puts the current decline in context: it measures not only the recent fall but also the gap from the highest recorded balance in 2020. The 14.5 million-unit level represents the combined balances of the exchanges covered by CryptoQuant’s tracking.
At Binance, reserves shrank from about 4.9 million units at their 2025 peak to 3.08 million units on November 2, 2026, according to the report. The decline totaled 1.82 million units, equivalent to 37.1% of the peak balance. These figures frame the platform’s decline over the period from its recorded peak in 2025 through the report date; they do not describe a one-day move. Binance’s balance, however, does not represent all the remaining supply on trading platforms: it accounts for about 21.2% of total reserves tracked by CryptoQuant. That means another 11.42 million units were spread across the other tracked exchanges on November 2.
CryptoQuant links the decline in exchange balances to a reduction in the amount of Ethereum readily available for spot selling, saying this could ease selling pressure. That is a possible interpretation of the effect of shrinking exchange supply, not evidence that falling reserves have already reduced selling pressure or lifted the price. The figures in the report also do not identify why the units left exchanges, nor do they establish that holders moved them into private custody or staking, explanations the report does not support. The direct conclusion presented by CryptoQuant is limited to a decline in the amount available for spot selling on the exchanges it tracks. The market impact of this move therefore depends on the availability of demand as well as the level of balances.
CryptoQuant says renewed or sustained buying demand could have a stronger bullish effect when fewer coins are immediately available on exchanges. The report presents this possibility conditionally, tying it to sustained or renewed demand rather than describing it as a certain price path. By contrast, falling reserves describe the supply held on exchanges and do not by themselves determine whether buyers will emerge or how prices will change. The reserves report cited no specific future date or expected next event; the next question in its analysis is whether demand will continue or renew while less supply is available for spot selling.