Net stats miss the real story as long-term holders spend 370,000 BTC monthly

Gross on-chain data shows that Bitcoin’s long-term holders were much more active than the net position change figures suggest.

Bitcoin long-term holders (LTHs) have been much more active on-chain than just the net stats suggest, with more than 370,000 BTC issued in the past month.

While many market observers cite approximately 144,000 BTC in net LTH distribution over the past 30 days, gross spending data, based on the Long-Term Holder Net Position Change metric, shows a significantly greater volume of coins in motion.

LTH expenses

According to Glassnode’s latest update, the cumulative volume issued indicates that LTHs have issued an average of more than 12,000 BTC per day during this period. This essentially equates to over 360,000-370,000 BTC in monthly outflows. The difference comes from the way net statistics are calculated.

The analytics company explained that LTH Net Position Change represents a balance between two forces: coins just maturing into long-term holder status from short-term holders (STHs), and coins issued by existing LTHs.

In the past 30 days, Glassnode estimated that approximately 370,000 BTC was issued by LTHs, while approximately 226,000 BTC transitioned from STH to LTH status. The difference between these two figures results in a net decrease in LTH supply of approximately 144,000 BTC, which matches the oft-cited net distribution figure.

The company added that when coin maturation rates are high, net metrics can significantly underestimate the true size of holders’ long-term distribution activity, visible in gross on-chain flows.

Crypto market sell-off

This holding activity was observed amid increased market volatility, as Bitcoin briefly fell near $81,000, which happens to be the lowest level since November when the crypto markets experienced a sharp sell-off. The decline followed steep U.S. morning declines in gold and stocks. While traditional markets have recovered from their lows, cryptocurrencies have yet to make a meaningful recovery. As a result, the Crypto Fear & Greed Index, which tracks crypto market sentiment, has included an “extreme anxiety” score of 16.

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Meanwhile, also separate Glassnode data revealed that the 90D-SMA realized profit/loss ratio has fallen from a peak of 19 in July 2025 to just 1.7 today. This sharp decline indicates a major shift in market demand and increasing ‘investor frustration’.