New capital inflows into Bitcoin, including corporate treasury purchases, stablecoin growth, and US spot ETF investments, reached approximately $4.9 billion during the 30-day period ending October 5. During this same timeframe, Bitcoin's realized capitalization increased by $12.8 billion, indicating that new money accounts for less than two-fifths of the total growth.
Data from Glassnode highlights that the current market rally is driven primarily by existing holders rather than fresh capital. This divergence between price gains and new inflows has been observed since the launch of US spot Bitcoin ETFs in January 2024, though current inflow volumes remain lower than those recorded in 2024 and 2025.
Bitcoin has struggled to sustain momentum, failing four times to break above the $87,000 level since September 21. As of October 8, the asset traded near $83,000, reflecting a 1% decline for the month. Market participants have encountered significant overhead liquidity on exchange order books during these attempts.
Increased profit-taking activity was noted among short-term holders, defined as those holding assets for less than 155 days. On the day Bitcoin achieved its first weekly close above $85,000, approximately 86% of coins sent to exchanges originated from this cohort moving assets at a profit. CryptoQuant data shows the aggregate cost basis for short-term holders is $78,250.
