Bitcoin Reclaims $80K as On-Chain Activity Drops to 2-Year Low

Highlights:

• Bitcoin has finally broken above $80,000 despite low on-chain activity.
• Santiment reported that Bitcoin on-chain activity dropped to a two-year low, even with the daily addition of 531,000 new Bitcoin wallets.
• Santiment explained that a smaller group of investors is driving BTC’s recent spike rather than a massive crowd.  

After roughly three months of trading below the $80,000 price mark, Bitcoin (BTC) finally exceeded major resistance to break above the level. Despite the remarkable price surge, Santiment, a renowned on-chain analytical firm, spotted an unusual trend in Bitcoin’s on-chain activity.

In a May 4 tweet, the analytical firm reported a significant dip in the number of people using the Bitcoin network. According to Santiment, 531,000 Bitcoin wallets are active each day. At the same time, 203,000 new wallets are being created every day. While these figures might seem huge, Santiment stated that they are sitting close to their lowest levels in the past two years. 

📊 Bitcoin’s overall on-chain activity has fallen to 2-year low levels in the midst of $BTC returning above $80K for the first time in 3 months today.

🏃 531K Bitcoin wallets making transfers daily
👶 203K new Bitcoin wallets created daily

The below chart represents how many… pic.twitter.com/JIpz8HHwHG

— Santiment Intelligence (@SantimentData) May 4, 2026

Santiment Explains Reasons for BTC’s Strange Situation

Historical trends show that when BTC’s price rises, more people tend to get involved in trading the asset. Consequently, this should result in more transactions, more new wallets, and more overall activity. However, this is not the case at the moment. BTC’s price has since been appreciating with minimal participation from traders. This suggests that a smaller group of investors is responsible for the new price surge, rather than a massive crowd of new and returning users. 

Going further, Santiment explained that the new trend matters because strong price growth is typically driven by rising interest. When more investors show interest in a particular cryptocurrency, it adds strength to the market. However, when activity remains low, sudden price spikes, like in BTC’s case, can feel less stable. This is because if large holders decide to dump the asset, there may not be enough new buyers to maintain the price spikes. 

Santiment stated:

“Low network activity during a price rally is a classic warning sign that the move (+22% price rise in the past 5 weeks) lacks a strong foundation. When only a small number of addresses are active and barely any new wallets are being created, it suggests that new adoption on a large scale hasn’t yet arrived.”  

Santiment Highlights the Positive Side of Low Activity Levels as BTC Reclaims $80K

According to Santiment, low on-chain activity could mean that interest in BTC has transiently reduced. This usually happens before BTC starts to gain massive investors’ attention. If BTC can reclaim $80,000 despite low on-chain activity, it suggests that when everyday users show interest in the asset, BTC could see even higher price spikes. Past market cycles have shown that a surge in new wallets and daily activity supported higher peaks. If this kind of growth returns, the market gains more support, eventually pushing asset prices very high.  

Santiment has more data points to show that this could be a house of cards kinda rally

BTC onchain activity is at 2 year low levels meanwhile BTC is at $80K

just something to keep in mind https://t.co/wz7hH8mfnZ

— Web3 Princess 👑 (@BrianneFrey) May 4, 2026

At the time of press, Bitcoin is changing hands at approximately $80,897 following a 1.2% jump in the past 24 hours. The asset remains the most valuable cryptocurrency with a market cap of about $1.62 trillion and a trading volume of roughly $49.45 billion. In the past week and month, Bitcoin spiked 5.3% and 20.6%, respectively. However, the asset is down 14.3% year to date. 

It is also 35.8%  below its $126,080 all-time high (ATH) attained in October 2025. Supply inflation remains low at 0.82%, while volatility is medium at 4.23%. Sentiment has shifted towards bullish. However, “Fear & Greed Index” continues to point towards Fear at 40.