Bitcoin Wallets Holding Over 0.1 BTC Fall to Two-Year Low as Investors Shift Strategies

Since Bitcoin’s launch in 2009, the number of unique BTC addresses holding more than 0.1 BTC steadily increased every single year—until recently. After peaking in December 2023 at 4,548,107 addresses, this group has shrunk over the past 24 months to 4,443,541, marking a notable 2.3% decline. This drop is far steeper than the 0.7% decrease in addresses holding over 0.01 BTC, suggesting a broader shift in investor behavior and how users choose to store their bitcoin.

Historical data shows that this metric had only ever trended upward, aside from short-lived pullbacks lasting a few months. But after plateauing through much of 2024, the number of addresses holding at least 0.1 BTC has continued to slide, reaching a level not seen in two years. For the first time in Bitcoin’s history, this specific wallet cohort has experienced a sustained two-year decline.

While the numbers seem to indicate fewer investors holding at least a few thousand dollars’ worth of BTC in non-custodial wallets like Ledger, Trezor, or Coldcard, the reality is far more complex. With the rise of centralized exchanges, ETFs, custodial platforms, derivatives markets, and corporate treasuries, it has become nearly impossible to determine how many individuals actually own more than 0.1 BTC. On-chain data cannot distinguish between users when assets are pooled or managed through financial intermediaries.

At the same time, BTC storage practices have evolved. Investors increasingly spread holdings across multiple addresses using extended public keys, utilize UTXO consolidation strategies, or employ advanced security techniques such as decoy wallets and XOR-based seed protection. These methods reduce the need to store larger balances in a single address, even for long-term holders.

Despite these shifts, tracking the number of addresses with more than 0.1 BTC still offers valuable insight into Bitcoin user trends. While investors concentrated more BTC in single wallets through 2023, the past two years highlight a meaningful transition toward diversified storage and more sophisticated security practices.