On-chain analytics services record an inflow of investments in Bitcoin financial tools and a significant increase in addresses with 0.1 BTC or less.
Over the past week, Bitcoin’s price surpassed the $24,000 mark for the first time since mid-August 2022, according to CoinGecko. Last Thursday, there was a slight correction, and BTC’s value returned to the $23,000 area. It’s still there on February 7 at 12:00 (GMT+2).
Amid Bitcoin’s success, the crypto market’s cap has grown by about 25% since the beginning of 2023. The rise triggered a FOMO effect among retail investors. According to Santiment, 620,000 new addresses with 0.1 BTC or less appeared on Bitcoin after January 13.
Recall that BTC exceeded $20,000 on January 13 and then continued to rise. CoinShares data shows that during the last week, capital inflows to Bitcoin investment instruments totaled $69 million, accounting for 90% of total investments in crypto funds. Inflows continued for the fourth consecutive week, totaling $230 million from the beginning of the year.
Investments in Bitcoin financial products and the growing number of retail BTC investors indicate an optimistic sentiment among market participants and growing confidence in digital assets. Indirectly, this is also evidenced by the Lightning Network’s growing capacity. Over the past year, it went up by 63%, reaching 5,490 BTC. This is reported by analysts at The Block Research, noting a positive trend in the adoption of BTC as a payment tool.
Despite a severe drop in 2022, small holders of Bitcoin expressed confidence in the first cryptocurrency, saving a record amount of BTC amid the fall of FTX. At the same time, Harvard economists reported that Bitcoin was the best option for hedging the potential risks of central banks due to economic sanctions.
