Bitcoin's on-chain demand has reached its most bearish reading of the year, with the 30-day sum of apparent demand sinking to nearly -147,000 BTC, according to CryptoQuant analyst Darkfost. This level hasn't been seen since December 2025 and signals that current accumulation is failing to absorb the newly issued Bitcoin supply.
Apparent demand, defined as the difference between new BTC issuance and the amount of supply that has remained dormant for more than one year, turned deeply negative. Darkfost noted that the metric helps gauge whether structural accumulation from long-term holders can offset freshly minted coins. "Bitcoin’s Apparent Demand has just reached its most negative level since the beginning of the year. With an estimate now approaching -147,000 BTC, we have to go back to December 2025 to find market sentiment this bearish," the analyst wrote on X.
The decline appears even though Bitcoin's price recovered from its early-2026 lows, suggesting the rebound was driven more by futures market momentum than genuine spot buying. Darkfost stressed that while futures can fuel short-term rallies, sustainable bullish phases require robust spot demand. "Without a meaningful recovery in spot demand, it becomes difficult to imagine Bitcoin sustaining a durable rally purely through the momentum driven by futures markets," he stated.
The analyst added that extremely pessimistic demand environments have historically created long-term opportunities for patient investors. At press time, Bitcoin traded at $77,300, with traders watching whether positive demand returns to support a genuine reversal or whether further pressure persists.
