Bitcoin Demand Vacuum: Will $65k-$75k Become the New Support?

What’s actually happening?

2025 was supposed to be Bitcoin’s megahit year — think fireworks, confetti, and institutional money doing the cha-cha. Instead, the party quietly turned into a slow karaoke night: prices stalled, the big buyers stopped grooving, and retail interest slipped out the back door. On-chain numbers now show a real “demand vacuum” — basically a shortage of fresh buyers willing to scoop up Bitcoin at today’s prices. If that hole stays unfilled, prices could drift down toward the $65,000–$75,000 neighborhood.

Here’s the short version: the mechanical buyers that propped up the rally (like spot ETFs and corporate treasuries) moved from buying to trimming positions. ETF flows shifted from net accumulation to net redemptions, and some treasury-buying programs slowed or paused. When the automatic bid that used to mop up every dip fades away, markets start to trade based on actual human appetite — and right now the appetite looks light.

On-chain analytics back this up. Demand growth decoupled from its recent trend after October, suggesting much of this cycle’s buying got concentrated into a short window around big events like ETF launches and political positioning. At the attention level, search trends, social chatter, and info-surfing metrics have cooled — classic retail retreat behavior when an asset starts to feel like a grind rather than a sprint.

Meanwhile, selling pressure has been hefty — the strongest stretch since the 2022 sell-off in some metrics — which means this isn’t just a lack of new buyers, it’s active distribution from existing holders. That combination can produce a long sideways slog or a deeper correction, depending on how quickly new buyers show up.

Two camps, two forecasts

Analysts have split into two storytelling camps. One group says the timeline is stretched, not broken: macro forces and debt cycles delayed the usual rhythm, so Bitcoin is in a temporary pause that could end when liquidity returns. In plain English: the Fed, Treasury, or some big macro shove could re-energize flows and bring buyers back.

The other group thinks time is the issue — that the usual four-year rhythm of boom-to-bust may have run its course and this October’s high looked a lot like a classic blow-off top. If they’re right, 2026 could be a quieter year for Bitcoin, with fair-weather support testing down around $65k–$75k as the market rebalances and waits for the next believable bid.

What would flip the script?

It’s not magical thinking that will fix this — the market wants structural signs. Analysts point to four clear shifts that would make a comeback believable:

1) Spot ETFs and large institutional pools flip back into consistent net buying instead of redemptions; 2) retail attention and on-chain activity revive (more searches, more wallets transacting, more social buzz); 3) long-term holders stop distributing and start accumulating, meaning less supply hitting the market; and 4) a macro liquidity tailwind or policy change that makes risk-on flows easier again.

Until enough of those boxes get checked, expect Bitcoin to remain in a “bear season” vibe: thinner liquidity, choppy price action, and the occasional dramatic headline that’s mostly noise. If you’re holding or watching, buckle up for a potentially bumpy stretch — and yes, maybe pack some snacks for the karaoke night.