Key facts
- Transactions under 0.01 BTC now represent approximately 80% of daily Bitcoin transactions, up from 44% in 2023.
- The increase in low-value transactions is linked to the growing use of the OP_RETURN opcode for protocols like Runes and Ordinals.
- The Bitcoin mempool has reached 128,000 transactions, its highest count since February 2025, primarily due to low-fee transactions.
- CryptoQuant's Bitcoin Network Activity Index is at its highest level since late 2024, driven by transaction counts rather than value.
- Daily Bitcoin transactions have exceeded 800,000, nearing the highs of the 2023-2025 bull cycle.
Bitcoin transactions valued below 0.01 BTC, currently worth around $630, now constitute approximately 80% of all daily transactions, a significant jump from about 44% in 2023, according to research firm CryptoQuant.
This surge in microtransactions is primarily driven by protocol-level activity, such as the use of the OP_RETURN opcode for services like Runes, Ordinals, BRC-20, and data timestamping. These activities generate a large volume of very small transactions, some as low as 546 satoshis (about $0.35).
The increased activity has pushed the Bitcoin mempool, the queue for unconfirmed transactions, to its highest count since February 2025, with 128,000 transactions waiting. While this congestion is concentrated in low-fee transactions and remains below previous peaks, sustained non-financial on-chain activity could lead to higher fees for economic transactions.
CryptoQuant's Bitcoin Network Activity Index has shown a steady rise since January, reaching its highest point since late 2024. The index has remained above its long-term trend for several weeks, even as Bitcoin's price has declined. Total daily transactions have surpassed 800,000, nearing the highs seen during the 2023-2025 bull cycle, indicating a structural increase in network usage.