Emre Yumlu 
Although Bitcoin has retreated roughly 50% from its all-time high, 2025 has marked a significant expansion in adoption. According to a recent assessment by financial services firm River, price weakness has not translated into slowing demand. On the contrary, institutional and global engagement with Bitcoin continues to deepen.
River notes that while market valuations have pulled back sharply since the October peak, structural adoption trends are compounding beneath the surface. Trust in Bitcoin, the firm argues, has grown at a historically unprecedented pace. What began as a niche technological experiment is now widely recognized as a global store of value, with adoption patterns comparable to the early growth of the internet.
Institutional and Banking Momentum Builds
In 2025 alone, institutions accumulated approximately 829,000 BTC. These acquisitions came from a broad spectrum of entities, including corporations, government bodies, funds, and exchange-traded products. Registered investment advisors have been net buyers of Bitcoin for eight consecutive quarters, allocating around $1.5 billion per quarter into Bitcoin ETFs over the past two years.
Major U.S. banks are also expanding their involvement. Around 60% of the country’s leading banks are reportedly developing Bitcoin-related products. A more favorable regulatory climate has enabled banks to custody Bitcoin directly and provide related services to clients. Meanwhile, businesses emerged as the largest net buyers in 2025, with crypto treasury companies driving much of the demand. Adoption among these treasury-focused firms expanded 2.5 times over the past year.
Merchant Growth and Sovereign Participation
Commercial acceptance has accelerated significantly. The number of U.S. merchants accepting Bitcoin payments has tripled, while global usage rose by 74% in 2025. Activity on the Lightning Network surged by 300%, with estimated monthly transaction volume now exceeding $1.1 billion.
At the sovereign level, five additional nation-states became Bitcoin holders in 2025. These include purchases linked to two sovereign wealth funds in Luxembourg and Saudi Arabia, a central bank acquisition in the Czech Republic, and direct involvement from Brazil and Taiwan. In total, River estimates that 23 countries now hold Bitcoin through mining operations, asset seizures, or central bank exposure.
Declining Volatility Signals Maturation of Bitcoin
Bitcoin’s volatility profile is also evolving. River reports that its fluctuations are increasingly converging toward those of gold and the S&P 500. Lower volatility reduces barriers for more risk-averse capital pools, potentially unlocking broader institutional participation.
Looking ahead, River expects adoption not only to persist but to accelerate. Despite price drawdowns, the underlying infrastructure, institutional engagement, and sovereign interest continue to reinforce Bitcoin’s trajectory as a mature global asset.
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