- Google Trends reported peak interest in “Bitcoin” and “Crypto,” reflecting growing retail engagement similar to past bullish cycles.
- The Coinbase app climbed to the 21st spot on Apple’s U.S. App Store, historically signaling increased retail participation in the crypto market.
Mentions of Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) have soared across social media and search engines in recent weeks, suggesting rising retail interest, as detailed in our last news piece. A research report showed a massive increase in search terms, which could indicate increasing retail inflows similar to previous bullish cycles.
Bitcoin, Ethereum & Crypto Grab Spotlight On The Internet
In their latest newsletter, researchers noted that “rising social activity reflects increased engagement from retail audiences.” This includes casual users and influencers discussing crypto topics. On X, mentions of Bitcoin climbed from 247,000 during the second week of January to 495,000 in the third week.
Moreover, Ethereum mentions saw an even sharper rise, growing from 73,600 to 293,000 over the same period. According to Google Trends, the uptick in interest is further confirmed since “Bitcoin” and “Crypto’ reached their peak this week.
Bitcoin scored a perfect 100 while Crypto hit 92 on January 20, when pro-crypto President Donald Trump was inaugurated, according to The Block Research report. For context, Google’s scale, ranging from 0 to 100, measures how popular search terms are relative to their peak over a given period of time. Furthermore, another search term is “how to buy crypto,” which scored a 100 rating over the past week.
The recent surge of Bitcoin since mid-December 2024 amid political events, may be contributing to the increase in activity. Over the weekend, Donald Trump made headlines by introducing a meme coin that rapidly achieved a $50 billion market capitalization. This development caused service disruptions on certain Solana-based wallets, signaling an influx of new users., as highlighted in our previous article.
Alongside, the Coinbase app reached number 21 of the most downloaded applications on Apple’s U.S. App Store, as of Monday. Historically, such ranks have been good indicators of retail interest in crypto.
BTC Struggles Despite Social Media Optimism
Despite the ongoing buzz on social media, Bitcoin price is struggling with losses at the $102,000 level. This comes as FUD (Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt) spread owing to no mention of crypto in the Trump administration’s priority agenda. Thus, the BTC dropped 5.72% to $102,447.10 on Tuesday, January 21.
Bitcoin price remained under pressure around the six-figure mark, with sellers dominating, according to TradingView. Donald Trump’s Inauguration Day brought significant volatility but left Bitcoin bulls disappointed as he didn’t address BTC, plans for a crypto strategic reserve.
Today, crypto-long liquidations totaled over $462 million, according to Coinglass. Hyblock Capital commented, “BTC is targeting the nearest liquidity on both sides.” Hence, traders speculated potential liquidity moves, predicting a sweep within the $90,000 to $100,000 range.
Crypto Chase, a trader, suggested taking a position near $99,500. Sharing a 4-hour chart analysis, he wrote, “I think gray box needs to hold for local bullishness and sweeping all the Trump leadup/news PA makes sense.”
Nonetheless, analysts remain optimistic about BTC prices skyrocketing in the future. They have offered short-term targets of as high as $125,000. Further, by 2025 end, Bitcoin price is expected to surpass $200,000 as the “how to buy crypto” trend gains traction.
