TL;DR:
- Lightning capacity hit a record, tracked publicly near 5,606 BTC and about 5,637 BTC on Amboss, even as bitcoin held a key weekly support zone.
- Lightning’s footprint stayed concentrated with node and channel counts below prior highs, while Taproot Assets v0.7 pushed multi-asset tooling and stablecoin-style trials.
- CryptoQuant data shared by Rand showed long-term holders distributing at a five-year pace, with holder supply declining as older wallets sell into support.
Bitcoin is sending mixed operational and market signals this week, as Lightning capacity climbed to a fresh record while long term holders distributed into a key weekly base. Public capacity was tracked near 5,606 BTC, with Amboss placing the peak around 5,637 BTC, suggesting more bitcoin is being committed to fast, low-fee channels. At the same time, on-chain flows show older wallets selling at one of the quickest rates in years. With price still holding weekly support, investors are weighing utility momentum against supply pressure as year-end positioning ramps up.
https://twitter.com/cryptorand/status/2001217200766451791
Capacity hits record, whales sell at support
Lightning’s record capacity increase followed broader exchange support and more BTC being locked into channels, yet the footprint looks concentrated because node and channel counts remain below earlier cycle highs. That pattern implies operators are reallocating liquidity rather than expanding visible infrastructure. Lightning Labs also released Taproot Assets v0.7, advancing tooling for Taproot-based assets over Lightning and adding features meant to make multi-asset transfers practical. Developers continue experimenting beyond simple BTC payments, including stablecoin-style trials, while capacity growth remains the headline KPI for now for faster settlement across payment rails.
On-chain data shared by analyst Rand and sourced from CryptoQuant shows OG distribution running at one of the fastest paces in the past five years. The chart tracks long-term holder flows alongside bitcoin price and realized price, with repeated spikes and a latest surge that stands out versus recent history. It also indicates long-term holder supply is starting to decline as distribution rises. In prior cycles, similar bursts appeared late in the move, when older holders sold after extended advances and newer participants absorbed inventory into strength before trend exhaustion.
Technically, bitcoin is still holding a major weekly support zone, and analyst Jelle argues that level is the decision line for trend analysis despite volatile lower timeframes. The weekly chart shows consolidation near a long-standing base that previously acted as support during earlier pullbacks. Jelle adds that short-term weakness does not change the broader structure as long as price stays above the zone, which still reflects higher lows compared with prior cycles. For markets, that leaves the outlook constructive but contested by distribution pressure and keeps risk teams on alert.
