Bitcoin’s price volatility has kept investors on edge in 2025. After peaking at over $104,000 in December, the cryptocurrency dropped to $76,200 in April—only to rebound by 37%, setting a new record of $104,900 this week. The rebound was influenced by President Trump’s tariff pause and the U.S. decision to build a strategic Bitcoin reserve.
Despite the price recovery, on-chain activity tells a different story. According to CryptoPresales.com, the number of active Bitcoin addresses fell by 2.5 million—a 16% drop—between December and April, reaching 12.9 million. This divergence between price and network activity raises questions about underlying engagement and adoption.
The Fifth-Largest Four-Month Drop in BTC Network History
The number of active Bitcoin addresses has fluctuated significantly over the past five years, reflecting investor sentiment and the crypto market trends. After reaching an all-time high of over 22 million in January 2021, BTC active addresses plunged to 15 million by mid-year and remained between 15 and 18 million for the next two years. In September 2023, they peaked again at over 20 million but slumped to 11.7 million by mid-2024. Although the following months saw a significant rebound, with BTC active addresses rising to 15.4 million in December, 2025 brought another hit.
Regulatory challenges, global macroeconomic concerns, Donald Trump’s trade policies, and global trade wars have shaken up the crypto market, causing the number of active addresses to plunge by 16% in four months. This sharp decline shows investors are more cautious due to economic uncertainty. At the same time, rising competition from new blockchain networks may be changing the crypto market landscape.
Moreover, the Glassnode data show this is the fifth-largest four-month decline the BTC network has ever seen. The 45% drop in active addresses from December 2017 to May 2018 remains Bitcoin’s largest ever, followed by a 33% decline in the second quarter of 2024 and 20% drops in both 2021 and 2023.
Most Other Major Cryptos Are Also Down, While Stablecoin Activity Rises
The trend of declining active addresses has hit other major cryptocurrencies in 2025, with most seeing much bigger drops than Bitcoin. For instance, the total number of active XRP addresses has plunged by a shocking 56% in four months, falling to 388,000 as of last week. Dogecoin and Solana follow closely, with steep 46% and 31% declines over the same period. Statistics show that BNB saw a 23% drop in active addresses, while Ethereum’s declined by 13%. On the other hand, stablecoins Tether and USDC have seen an impressive 20% and 57% growth reflecting the increasing number of crypto investors searching for a hedge against price swings.
