Bitcoin retail traders are beginning to give up, with on-chain analytics firm Santiment reporting that the number of non-empty $BTC wallets has declined by about 108,700 since October 16.
The key question is whether waning retail confidence will push Bitcoin lower, particularly as $BTC struggles to regain $80,000.
Bitcoin Wallets Fall by 109K as Retail Confidence Slips
Bitcoin had nearly 60 million non-empty wallets last month. Since then, the number has dropped by around 108,700 to 59.88 million. Over the same period, Bitcoin’s price fell from $84,890 to about $74,547, underscoring the market’s weakness.
Santiment says the falling wallet count indicates that some retail holders are losing patience after weeks of declining prices.
This is significant because smaller wallets holding less than 0.1 $BTC account for around 5% to 7% of Bitcoin’s total circulating supply.
Bitcoin demand is also showing signs of weakness.
The Coinbase Premium Index stayed negative, with the supplied chart showing a reading of -0.1468% on November 10, indicating weak relative demand on the US exchange.
Why Retail Traders Are Losing Confidence in $BTC
Bitcoin is currently under pressure from several directions. Since late October, falling AI stocks have added to market concerns, while Bitcoin ETFs have recorded millions of dollars in outflows.
Meanwhile, rising US Treasury yields are making safer investments more appealing, leaving less money flowing into riskier assets such as Bitcoin. When market fears increase, retail investors often retreat rather than buy the dip.
Santiment’s data also shows that the amount of Bitcoin held on exchanges has fallen to around 1.28 million $BTC. This suggests the decline in wallet numbers is not simply the result of investors transferring coins to exchanges to sell. Some may have emptied their wallets.
Bitcoin Sharks Are Buying the Dip
While retail holders are pulling back, wallets holding between 1 and 100 $BTC have been accumulating Bitcoin.
Santiment data shows that wallets holding 1–10 $BTC accumulated 10,076 $BTC over the past two weeks, while wallets holding 10–100 $BTC added another 4,131 $BTC. Combined, the groups accumulated more than 14,200 $BTC as Bitcoin moved toward $75,000.
Meanwhile, Strategy, Bitcoin’s largest corporate holder, acquired another 1,036 $BTC and repurchased $188 million worth of STRC shares. Following these latest purchases, the company holds 850,364 $BTC and $4.9 billion in cash and other USD assets as of November 8, 2026.
Bitcoin Needs Buyers to Halt Its Slide
The problem is that shark accumulation has not yet been enough to turn Bitcoin’s price higher. $BTC is still trading around $74537, while retail wallets continue to disappear and US demand remains weak.
That makes the $72,000-$75,000 range a key test. If $BTC falls below that zone, the retail retreat could continue.
If Bitcoin holds that level despite further wallet losses, it would indicate that sellers are struggling to push the price lower.
Source: coinpedia.org. Adapted by NBTC.
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