Bitcoin on-chain transactions have surpassed 800,000, recording the strongest network activity so far this year. However, analysts say much of the increase is concentrated in small data-type transfers, making it different in nature from the demand expansion seen in past bull markets.

According to Bitcoin Magazine on June 22, daily transactions on the Bitcoin network have recently exceeded 800,000. This is seen as the first clear signal of a rebound in activity since late 2024.

On-chain analytics firm CryptoQuant said in a recent report that the daily number of Bitcoin transactions has more than doubled from a 2025 low and is nearing the peak level recorded during the 2023 to 2025 bull market.

The network activity index also rose above its long-term trend line for the first time since December 2024. Current activity has recovered to about 7 percent below the all-time high recorded in September 2024. CryptoQuant assessed this as a "positive activity phase" appearing for the first time since mid-2024. However, it pointed out that price moves are heading in the opposite direction to on-chain indicators.

The key is the change in transaction size. Transactions below 0.01 bitcoin and below 0.001 bitcoin now account for about 80 percent of total Bitcoin transfers. That is a sharp increase from about 44 percent in 2023.

CryptoQuant said the recent rise in transactions is being driven less by actual fund movements and more by expanded protocol use such as Ordinals, Runes, BRC-20 tokens and data timestamp services. These services use the OP_RETURN function to record data in Bitcoin transactions. Use surged after the OP_RETURN data limit was effectively eased last year, and usage in 2026 is reported to be nearing an all-time high.

The problem is that this activity is causing network congestion. About 128,000 unprocessed transactions are currently piled up in the Bitcoin mempool, the highest level since February 2025.

CryptoQuant warned that if congestion persists, fees for economic transactions such as actual payments or fund transfers could rise. It said transaction costs for ordinary users could also increase as small data-recording transfers grow.

Market prices are not reflecting this on-chain recovery. Bitcoin is trading at about $64,700 and has fallen about 17 percent over the past 30 days. That is about half the all-time high of $126,080 recorded in October 2025.

In past bull markets, increases in transaction counts often appeared alongside rising prices and expanding real economic activity. This time differs in that protocol-based data use is driving the transaction increase.

As a result, analysts say the Bitcoin network has clearly become more active than before, but it should be judged separately whether that activity directly leads to increased investment demand or a rise in prices.