The average number of transactions in the BTC network increased by 31%

by Eve Adams

2 years ago

Researchers from Glassnode published a report noting interesting changes in the cryptocurrency market over the past week. One of the key events was the significant impact of the Runes protocol on Bitcoin user activity.

While the number of active addresses is decreasing, the number of transactions has reached new highs, the experts indicated.

Glassnode specialists emphasized that the average daily number of transfers is 617 thousand, which is 31% higher than the annual average. This indicates a high demand for Bitcoin's blockchain space. They noted that Runes, launched in April 2024 on the day of the halving, continues to gain popularity, replacing the previous protocols Inscriptions and BRC-20.

Experts explained that by using the OP_RETURN field, Runes allows data to be encoded into the blockchain, taking up significantly less space. Currently, transactions related to the protocol account for 57.2% of all daily transfers on the network, indicating a shift in collector interest towards this innovation.

Additionally, experts noted the growing influence of the ETF market in the US on Bitcoin's price. Despite significant inflows into US spot funds, the price of Bitcoin remains stable.

This is due to the popularity of the cash-and-carry arbitrage strategy, where long positions on ETFs are paired with short positions on the CME Group futures market. As a result, even with the increase in open interest (OI) to a record $11.5 billion, overall demand remains neutral, the researchers noted.

Analysts also note that large hedge funds are increasing short positions in the futures market, which also affects BTC price dynamics. Currently, the open interest on the CME Group is $6.33 billion for Bitcoin and $97 million for micro futures.