Key points to remember:
- The number of long-term Bitcoin holders has reached an all-time high, with long-term investors holding 28% of all available BTC
- The number of small Bitcoin addresses saw a sharp increase after Bitcoin recovered the $20,000 price level in mid-January
- Bitcoin is currently up over +38% YTD
Fear and Grid index shifts to greed as investor optimism returns
After months of bearish sentiment in the crypto market, the start of 2023 brought a healthy dose of optimism. The Fear and Grid Index, a measure of crypto market movements and an indicator of the fair value of assets, has moved back above 50, after being below that level for most of 2022.
According to a crypto analytics firm Santiment, 620,000 small Bitcoin addresses (i.e. 0.1 BTC or less) have joined the network since January 13, the day the Bitcoin price recovered the $20,000 level for the first time after the collapse of the FTX cryptocurrency exchange in early November 2022.
With the recent surge, the total number of such small Bitcoin balances has risen to 39.8 million, the highest since November 19.
In addition to new addresses, a new record was also reached in terms of long-term holders. According to blockchain analysts Glassnode, the share of Bitcoin held by long-term holders has reached an all-time high of 28% of all Bitcoin in circulation.
Last active BTC offer by age. Image source: Glassnode
It should be noted that the long-term supply of Bitcoin has been steadily increasing since 2014, but it is still an encouraging sign that the trend prevailed during the crypto winter of 2022. Glassnode researchers commented on the Strong Bitcoin Performance in January:
“Bitcoin markets saw the strongest monthly price performance since October 2021, fueled by both historic spot demand and a sequence of short squeezes.”
As of this writing, Bitcoin is trading at just under $23,000, up over +38% year-to-date. Check out our Bitcoin price prediction to see where it might go next.
David is a crypto enthusiast and personal finance expert. He has created numerous publications for different platforms. He loves exploring new things, and that’s how he discovered blockchain in the first place.