Santiment counted 59.95 million non-empty Bitcoin addresses on October 26, down by 30,000 from October 16. The decline in funded addresses has raised competing interpretations: it could reflect seller exhaustion after a prolonged period of stagnant prices, or signal weakening participation ahead of another selloff.

Bitcoin touched approximately $79,332 on Monday before trading near $80,000. Resistance was identified around $82,000 to $82,500, while Ali Martinez said a breakdown from a four-hour rising channel could expose BTC to a potential buying area near $72,500.

U.S. spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds also recorded outflows of $635.6 million on October 22 and $137.9 million on October 23, according to Farside Investors.

Falling wallet count offers competing signals

Santiment said Bitcoin had approximately 59.95 million non-empty addresses on October 26, about 30,000 fewer than on October 16. The firm suggested that smaller, discouraged holders may withdrawing after weeks of limited price movement. Non-empty addresses are those carrying any bitcoin balance, and their total is widely tracked as a proxy for retail participation in the network.

The metric measures funded blockchain addresses rather than individual people, making it an indirect indicator of retail behavior. A single person can control multiple addresses, so the decline cannot establish precisely how many investors sold or exited the market. Balances can also reach zero when holders consolidate coins into other wallets or transfer them to exchanges, so an emptied address does not necessarily correspond to coins sold.

Santiment described the reduction in retail participation as a possible contrarian signal. Recoveries can follow periods in which impatient holders abandon positions and speculative activity declines. However, the wallet count alone does not confirm a market bottom or demonstrate that buying demand has returned.

Santiment’s October 9 analysis had shown the opposite trend: addresses holding less than 0.01 BTC were increasing despite weaker market conditions. At that time, the firm viewed continued retail buying as an obstacle to recovery. Its October 26 analysis instead focused on the decline in wallet numbers.

Bitcoin’s Falling Wallet Count May Signal A Bottom Bitcoin has lost roughly 30K non-empty wallets since October 16th, bringing the total back down near 59.95M. This may sound alarming, but it doesn’t necessarily signal declining utility. After weeks of stagnant $BTC price… pic.twitter.com/vI2kJHhGEf — Santiment Intelligence (@SantimentData) October 26, 2026

For Bitcoin, the immediate reference level remains $80,000. Stabilization at that level followed by a move above $82,500 would support Santiment’s proposed bottoming interpretation. A sustained break below $79,000, by contrast, would leave that interpretation unsupported.

Four-hour channel breakdown puts $72,500 in focus

Technical indicators have added to concerns about further downside. Martinez’s analysis showed Bitcoin breaking below a rising channel on the four-hour chart, disrupting its previous pattern of higher lows.

BITCOIN APPROACHES BUY ZONE Bitcoin appears to have broken below a rising parallel channel on the 4-hour chart. As long as $82,000 holds as resistance, $BTC could continue correcting toward $72,500. That’s where I’ll be looking for the next buying opportunity. pic.twitter.com/lHnB4XnUhS — Ali Charts (@alicharts) October 26, 2026

Martinez identified $82,000 as resistance and $72,500 as a potential buying area, approximately 9% below Monday’s Bitcoin price. The levels represent technical reference points rather than confirmation of a future move.

Institutional positioning provides additional context. Glassnode reported on October 21 that U.S. spot Bitcoin ETF holders had an average entry price near $81,500. Corporate treasuries had an average purchase price of approximately $80,200, according to the same analysis.

Glassnode also placed the True Market Mean near $77,600. The indicator is one of Glassnode’s on-chain cost-basis models, designed to estimate the aggregate price paid for coins held across the market. That level provides another reference below $80,000 but does not confirm that Bitcoin will decline further.

ETF flows have remained a concern for a sustained recovery. Farside Investors reported $635.6 million in spot Bitcoin ETF outflows on October 22, followed by another $137.9 million on October 23. U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs began trading in January 2024, and their daily flow figures have since become one of the most closely followed gauges of institutional demand for the asset.

Against this backdrop, Bitcoin’s near-term technical picture centers on whether BTC can reclaim the $82,000–$82,500 area or instead extend losses below $79,000. The Federal Reserve’s October 28 policy decision is another near-term market event cited in the analysis. Federal Reserve rate decisions are among the macroeconomic events most closely watched by digital-asset traders, as outcomes shape expectations for borrowing costs and liquidity conditions across financial markets.

Until resistance is reclaimed, the available wallet, technical and fund-flow data do not establish a confirmed Bitcoin bottom. BTC remains exposed to the lower support levels identified by analysts.