The under is an excerpt from a current version of Bitcoin Journal PRO, Bitcoin Journal’s premium markets publication. To be among the many first to obtain these insights and different on-chain bitcoin market evaluation straight to your inbox, subscribe now.
As we head into 2023, we need to spotlight the newest state of bitcoin’s quantity and volatility after a current wave of capitulation. Final time we touched on these dynamics was in “The Bitcoin Ghost City” in October, the place we highlighted that an especially low quantity and low volatility interval in bitcoin value, GBTC and the choices market was a regarding signal for the following leg decrease. This performed out in early November.
Quick ahead and the tendencies of declining quantity and low volatility are again as soon as once more. Though this might be indicative of one other leg decrease to come back out there, it’s extra probably indicative of a complacent and decimated market that few members need to contact.
Even throughout the November 2021 capitulation interval, there was a traditionally low interval of volatility. Generally essentially the most market ache will be felt when having to attend for a transparent change in tendencies. The bitcoin value is offering that ache as we’ve but to see the kind of explosion in market volatility that has outlined market pivots and main directional strikes up to now.
Whereas there are various alternative ways to outline, classify and estimate bitcoin quantity out there, all of them present the identical factor: September and November 2021 have been the height months of motion. Since then, quantity in each the spot and perpetual futures markets have been in regular decline.
General market depth and liquidity has additionally taken a significant hit after the collapse of FTX and Alameda. Their destruction has led to a big liquidity gap, which is but to be stuffed as a result of lack of market makers at present within the house.
By far, bitcoin remains to be essentially the most liquid market of some other cryptocurrency or “token,” but it surely’s nonetheless comparatively illiquid in comparison with different capital markets for the reason that entire business has been crushed over the previous few months. Decrease market depth and liquidity means belongings are susceptible to extra risky shocks as single, comparatively giant orders can have a larger impression on market value.
On-Chain Apathy
As anticipated within the present setting, we’re additionally seeing extra market complacency when on-chain knowledge. Though persevering with to rise over time, the variety of lively addresses — distinctive addresses lively as both a sender or receiver — stay pretty stagnant over the previous few months. The chart under highlights the 14-day transferring common of lively addresses falling under the working common over the past yr. In earlier bull market situations, we’ve seen progress in lively addresses outpace the present pattern pretty considerably.
Since handle knowledge has its flaws, Glassnode’s knowledge for lively entities reveals us the identical pattern. General, bear markets reversing are the results of many components, together with progress in new customers and a rise in on-chain exercise.

In our July 11 launch “When Will The Bear Market Finish?”, we made the case that the brunt of the price-based capitulation had already been felt, whereas the true ache forward was within the type of a time-based capitulation.
“A take a look at earlier bitcoin bear market cycles reveals two distinct phases of capitulation:
“The primary is a price-based capitulation, via a collection of sharp selloffs and liquidations, because the asset attracts down anyplace from 70 to 90% under earlier all-time-high ranges.
“The second part, and the one that’s spoken of far much less usually, is the time-based capitulation, the place the market lastly begins to search out an equilibrium of provide and demand in a deep trough.” — Bitcoin Journal PRO
We consider time-based capitulation is the place we stand immediately. Whereas trade charge pressures can definitely intensify over the quick time period — given the macroeconomic headwinds that stay — the situations that look more likely to persist over the quick and medium time period look to be a sustained interval of chop with extraordinarily low ranges of volatility that depart each merchants and HODLers questioning when volatility and trade charge appreciation will return.
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