A large holder transferred 191,453,164 USD Coin (USDC) into the Aave protocol on July 24, according to Whale Alert. Whale Alert valued the transaction at $191.42 million.

Aave is a decentralized lending and borrowing protocol, so large stablecoin movements into the protocol can relate to liquidity provision, collateral management, or other on-chain positioning. The transfer pointed to significant activity involving the protocol, though it did not establish whether the transaction would translate into direct demand for Aave (AAVE). At the same time, AAVE was trading at $96.28, remaining just below the $99–$100 resistance area.

That zone had already rejected several recovery attempts, making the timing of the large USDC movement notable. CryptoQuant’s Spot Average Order Size also showed Big Whale Orders near AAVE’s current price range. However, neither the transfer data nor the order-size readings confirmed that whales were buying AAVE in anticipation of a breakout.

Large transactions rise near the $100 level

The USDC transfer came as large transactions involving AAVE increased more broadly. Santiment recorded a rise in Whale Transaction Count for transfers above $100,000 before the latest partial reading.

The increase suggested renewed activity among large holders. However, the metric includes purchases, sales, and wallet transfers, meaning a higher Whale Transaction Count can point to greater volatility without identifying a clear direction for price movement.

Spot market demand offered a more constructive signal. CryptoQuant’s 90-day Spot Taker CVD showed Taker Buy Dominant activity during AAVE’s latest recovery. This indicated that aggressive spot buyers had increasingly crossed the spread to execute purchases.

Positioning data from Coinalyze showed a similar tilt. Long positions accounted for 56.09% of one-day positions, while shorts represented 43.79%. The one-day Long/Short Ratio stood at 1.28.

Even so, heavy long positioning can raise liquidation risk if AAVE fails to clear resistance and faces another rejection. That makes the $99–$100 area important not only as a chart level, but also as a point where leveraged positioning could be tested.

AAVE remains below resistance after June recovery

AAVE had been consolidating below $100 after recovering from its June lows. On the daily chart, the token formed an ascending triangle, with buyers defending a rising trendline below horizontal resistance.

The token also traded above its 20-day, 50-day, and 100-day Exponential Moving Averages. Those averages were near $92.27, $91.76, and $88.46, respectively.

Meanwhile, the Stochastic RSI showed readings of 52.68 and 49.31. Those neutral levels left room for movement in either direction.

A confirmed daily close above $100 could strengthen the case for a breakout. If AAVE is rejected at that level, attention may shift back toward the moving averages below $92.

Whale activity increased as AAVE continued to trade beneath the psychologically important $100 resistance area. Buy-dominant spot flow supported the breakout setup, but it did not confirm that a move above resistance had occurred.