Bitcoin is still the "diamond hands" asset, far surpassing Ethereum: Glassnode

According to a new report from Glassnode that CoinPhoton received, Bitcoin holders continue to demonstrate superior resilience compared to Ethereum investors, as ETH is being circulated and spent significantly more than the “digital gold” BTC.

Glassnode reported that data — collected before this week's sharp market correction — shows that BTC is being moved less, causing it to behave like a “digital savings asset.”

Meanwhile, ETH is used more frequently as it serves as “digital oil”: both being held and used as network fuel and collateral.

“Bitcoin operates just like a digital savings asset, designed for long-term holding: the supply is increasingly moving into long-term storage wallets, rather than remaining on exchanges,” the report states.

On the contrary, “Ethereum accurately reflects the nature of a high transaction volume smart contract platform,” Glassnode stated, supported by the backing from native staking and recently the flow of ETF funds.

The reason comes from the widespread use of ETH in smart contracts — the platform that operates decentralized applications, DeFi protocols, and crypto assets.

Glassnode indicates that “long-term ETH holders are activating their old coins at a rate 3 times that of long-term BTC holders, showing they are more willing to spend — reflecting the utility-based behavior of ETH.”

Ethereum powers many crypto applications, from stablecoins to DEX exchanges. To carry out stablecoin transactions or token swaps on a DEX, users must pay gas fees in ETH. This leads to ETH being used more frequently, playing less of a ‘store of value’ role like BTC — even when ETH ETFs have been approved and traded on traditional markets.

Meanwhile, the ETF inflow for Bitcoin and Ethereum had a bleak day as the XRP ETF set a record for capital inflow in 2025. According to Farside Investors, 11 spot BTC ETFs experienced net withdrawals of nearly 867 million USD on Thursday — the second-highest level in the 22-month history. Nine ETH ETFs also recorded outflows of 260 million USD, while Bitcoin fell below 98,500 USD.

Nevertheless, Glassnode stated that ETH still has certain value storage characteristics: “A quarter of the total ETH supply is locked in native staking and ETFs.”

The price of ETH recently stood at around 3,208 USD, down 4.5% for the week. After nearly four years, ETH reached a new peak in August but has since traded significantly lower than the record high of 4,946 USD.

Bitcoin is currently trading around 95,992 USD, down nearly 6% over the past week. The historical peak of BTC is 126,088 USD set in October.

Thạch Sanh