Why Bitcoin’s bull run feels lonely

The latest Bitcoin bull run feels different.

Scratch that. Every bitcoin bull run feels different, as each cycle brings with it fresh narratives and new blood. But there’s one element that’s always been consistent throughout Bitcoin’s history, and that’s retail interest in buying into freedom tech and f**k you money. Well, Bitcoin to the moon rallies, at least.

Retail is sitting this Bitcoin bull run out

Remember retail? Because all I hear is crickets…

Literally zero taxi drivers, no friends’ cousins twice-removed, or kindergarten teachers asking if it’s too late to buy. Despite some analysts’ conviction about Alt Season revving up, I haven’t even been asked about Fartcoin, Dogecoin, or Ripple, and I have a pretty good templated answer to the latter, if you’d like to borrow.

Anyway, the point here is this: retail is sitting this Bitcoin bull run out, and it can’t be because of a lack of awareness. This time it’s different. Somewhere between the Bitcoin ETFs, presidential pumps, and Larry Fink taking over at the WEF, retail decided this game was no longer for them.

Dare I say it? Bitcoin’s just no fun anymore, or maybe retail got so badly burned last time around they finally learned not to play with fire. No one’s even casually searching for news: Google Trends for Bitcoin isn’t even grazing a mild peak next to Japanese walking and Labubu dolls.

That no one uses Google to search for anything anymore could arguably be a factor in this, but still, the silence from distant relatives and service workers is palpable.

100 days over $100K

You would hardly even notice that the number-one crypto has spent 100 consecutive days above $100k; a psychological feat, a generational inflection point. Each time Bitcoin has leapfrogged a major round number ($100, $1,000, $10,000), it has ushered in a new era of adoption, investment, and hockey-stick price action.

Yet, this time around, nobody cares.

Not only is Bitcoin sustaining celestial highs and carving out new all-time tops, but its technical backbone is strengthening. Bitcoin’s 200-day moving average crossed above $100,000, a powerful signal for traders and long-term holders alike.

In every Bitcoin bull run, breaking and holding above historic resistance on both price and moving averages has preceded periods of continued momentum. But retail is nowhere to be found.

This cycle has even flushed out some of the longest-standing Bitcoin whales, making way for the same corrosive institutions that Bitcoin was meant to abhor.

Crypto in your 401k

2025 has also seen a quantum shift in retirement planning with Bitcoin and other cryptos being legally allowed in mainstream retirement accounts, opening direct access for tens of millions of Americans to accumulate hard money for their futures.

But retail couldn’t care less.

They’ve packed their bags all the way to the virtual Bahamas and said “Let’s sit this one out.” And while Bitcoin has arguably morphed from a speculative trade to a staple of retirement portfolios and institutional diversification, retail’s absence feels incredibly sad.