Bitcoin

Published 17 Oct 2025

Bitcoin History in Tables: Price, Halvings, Adoption

Bitcoin started in 2009 as open-source money with no central owner. It runs on a public network that issues new coins on a fixed schedule and secures itself with computing power.

Over time, it moved from an experiment to a trillion-dollar asset held by retail, institutions, and ETFs. The path wasn’t smooth. It came with manias, crashes, and long recoveries. Yet each cycle built a stronger base: better infrastructure, deeper liquidity, and a more resilient network.

This report tells that story with data and tables. You’ll see Bitcoin’s price on a logarithmic scale, market cap growth, and the 4-year halving cycles that shape supply.

We map major drawdowns and recoveries, show how volatility has changed, and plot an adoption timeline from corporate treasuries to U.S. spot ETFs. We also track network fundamentals — hashrate, addresses, and settlement volume — to show what’s happening under the hood.

You’ll find a simple seasonality view, a scale check versus gold and equities, and an S2F “Models Corner” to frame ranges — used carefully, not as a promise.

Price Evolution (2009-2025)

Below is a clean table of Bitcoin’s year-end levels and context. It replaces any talk of charts and keeps the focus on the numbers.

Bitcoin by Year — Price, YoY Change, Key Event

Year	Price (USD)	YoY Change	Key Event
2009	0.0009	—	Genesis block
2010	0.30	33,233%	First real transaction
2011	4.25	1,317%	First major bubble
2012	13.50	218%	First halving
2013	754	5,485%	Silk Road, $1K milestone
2014	320	−58%	Mt. Gox collapse
2015	430	34%	Market bottom
2016	963	124%	Second halving
2017	14,156	1,370%	$20K peak, mainstream wave
2018	3,847	−73%	Crypto winter
2019	7,167	86%	Recovery begins
2020	29,001	305%	COVID shock, institutional entry
2021	47,733	65%	$69K ATH year, El Salvador
2022	16,547	−65%	Terra/FTX collapses
2023	42,200	155%	Recovery year
2024	108,000	156%	Spot ETFs, new ATH
2025	113,214	5%	Post-halving year in progress

How to read this table

Focus on direction across cycles (higher lows after each crash) rather than any single year.
Watch halving years (2012, 2016, 2020, 2024): they often precede strong next-year prints.

Large negative years cluster around credit/liquidity shocks and counterparty failures (2014, 2018, 2022).

What this shows

The long-term uptrend survived each deep drawdown and set higher floors in later cycles.
Supply cuts (halvings) and easier access (ETFs) align with the strongest up-years.
2025 sits as an early post-halving consolidation, following a big 2024 move.

Market Cap: From Billions to Trillions

Bitcoin Market Capitalization — Year-End Levels

Units: billions (2013–2020), trillions (2021–2024)

Year	Market Cap	YoY Change
2013	$10.25B	—
2014	$5.23B	−49.83%
2015	$6.98B	+31.82%
2016	$17.18B	+144.47%
2017	$539.58B	+2,979.46%
2018	$126.01B	−77.44%
2019	$190.33B	+54.23%
2020	$741.22B	+294.43%
2021	$2.21T	+188.38%
2022	$802.98B	−64.00%
2023	$1.65T	+104.38%
2024	$3.27T	+96.77%

How to read this table

2017, 2020–2021, and 2024 mark the acceleration phases that pushed Bitcoin into the trillion-dollar class.
Large down years (2014, 2018, 2022) line up with counterparty failures and liquidity stress.
The trend across cycles is a rising ceiling and a rising floor: each recovery rebuilt scale faster.

What this shows

Bitcoin graduated from a niche asset to multi-trillion scale, attracting institutions and ETF flows.
Drawdowns remain sharp, but recoveries compound to higher market cap plateaus.
Positioning 2025: post-halving, post-ETF environment with a much deeper capital base than prior cycles.

Halving Cycles: Supply Shock, Then Expansion

Bitcoin Halvings — Reward Cuts and Price Context

Halving #	Date	Block Reward	Price Before	Price ~1 Year After	Change
1	Nov 28, 2012	50 → 25 BTC	$12.35	$1,037	+8,300%
2	Jul 9, 2016	25 → 12.5 BTC	$665	$2,568	+286%
3	May 11, 2020	12.5 → 6.25 BTC	$8,821	$56,704	+543%
4	Apr 20, 2024	6.25 → 3.125 BTC	$63,000	$108,000*	+71%*

Note: Figures for the 2024 halving are interim. The cycle is still unfolding.

How to read this table

Each halving cuts new supply in half; strong gains tend to show up after the event, not before.
The magnitude varies by liquidity and macro conditions, but the post-halving up-leg repeats across cycles.

What this shows

Halvings anchor market regimes: supply shock first, expansion later.
The 2024 halving sits in an ETF era, where access to BTC is easier for institutions — one reason the dataset shows a solid post-halving gain.

Crashes & Recoveries: What Broke, How Far It Fell, What Happened Next

Major Bitcoin Drawdowns — Peak to Trough

Event	Date / Window	Peak → Trough	Drawdown	Trigger / Notes
Mt. Gox Flash Crash	Jun 2011	$17 → $0.01	−99.9%	Early market structure failure; thin liquidity
Mt. Gox Collapse	Feb 2014	$800 → $400	−50%	Exchange insolvency and lost coins
2018 Bear Market	2018 (to Dec)	$20,000 → $3,200	−84%	Post-2017 deleveraging; ICO unwind
COVID Shock	Mar 2020	$9,100 → $3,800	−50%	Global liquidity squeeze and forced selling
Terra/FTX Cascade	2022	$69,000 → $15,500	−77%	Stablecoin failure (UST/LUNA), CeFi/FTX collapse
$19.1B Liquidations	Mar 2025	intra-cycle	n/a (derivatives event)	Largest single-episode liquidations in dataset
Tariff Headline Drop	Oct 2025	$119,000 → $110,000	−12%	Macro headline; fast snap then stabilization

How to read this table

Focus on peak-to-trough depth and the type of shock (exchange failure, macro stress, derivatives wipe-out).
Notice that exchange/credit events (2014, 2022) cut deeper than macro blips (2020, 2025 tariff).
Post-shock phases in later cycles stabilize faster as market depth improves.

What this shows

Bitcoin absorbed multiple “death events” and still set higher highs in later cycles.
The worst drawdowns tie to counterparty and credit risk, not to block-level failures.
By 2025, shocks look shallower and shorter, consistent with a larger, more institutional market.

Annual Volatility — Daily Average by Year

Year	Volatility
2016	2.49%
2017	4.13%
2018	4.58%
2019	4.06%
2020	5.17%
2021	4.89%
2022	4.75%
2023	3.92%
2024	3.45%
2025	3.12%

How to read this table

Peaks line up with stress years (2018, 2020–2022).
Recent prints (2023–2025) are lower than earlier cycle highs.

What this shows

As the market deepens and institutions participate, swings compress outside shock periods.
Volatility is cycle-dependent: it spikes in crises, then grinds lower during expansions.

Adoption Timeline: Institutions, ETFs, and Policy

Key milestones

Year	Milestone	Why it mattered
2018	MicroStrategy noted as first corporate buyer	A public company put BTC on the treasury map.
2020	Square buys $50M in BTC	Corporate treasury use moved from idea to action.
2021	Tesla buys $1.5B in BTC	BTC entered mainstream headlines and boardrooms.
2021	El Salvador makes BTC legal tender	First nation-state adoption; policy case study.
2024	U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs approved (11 funds)	Regulated, easy access via brokerage and retirement accounts.
2024	BlackRock’s IBIT becomes largest spot ETF	Scale and brand brought new classes of buyers.
2025	Strategy holds 632,457 BTC	Corporate accumulation at multi-cycle scale.

How to read this table

Each step reduced friction for large buyers (rules, custody, access).
Policy actions (legal tender, ETFs) expanded the addressable base beyond crypto-native users.

What this shows

Adoption is no longer just retail; it now includes corporations, funds, and governments.
The ETF era (2024–2025) explains steadier inflows and quicker post-shock stabilization.

Network Fundamentals: Hashrate, Addresses, Settlement

Security (hashrate), user base (addresses), and settlement (USD volume) — all trend higher. Below are clean tables instead of charts.

Hashrate (network security)

Units as provided; shows the order-of-magnitude growth.

Year	Hash Rate	Note
2009	7 MH/s	Early CPU era
2015	500 GH/s	ASICs dominate
2020	150 EH/s	Industrial-scale mining
2025	750 EH/s	~5× vs 2020 (user-provided)

Wallet addresses (reach)

Year	Addresses	Change vs prior row
2015	5,000,000	—
2020	50,000,000	+900%
2025	220,000,000	+340%

Annual settlement volume (USD)

Year	Volume	Change vs prior row
2020	$1.2T	—
2025	$3.8T	+217%

How to read these tables

Treat them as directional gauges of network health: more security, more users, more value settled.
Orders of magnitude matter more than exact values.

What this shows

Security compounds: rising hashrate deters attacks and supports long-term confidence.
Reach expands: address growth points to a larger active and passive holder base.
Utility scales: higher settlement volume means the network moves more value, not just price.

Seasonality: Best and Worst Months

Historical performance clusters by month, but seasonality is weaker than cycles and liquidity. Use it as context, not a signal.

Monthly pattern

Bucket	Months	Comment
Best	October, November, December	Year-end strength shows up across multiple cycles.
Worst	January, March, August	Early-year resets, tax effects, and thin summer liquidity.

How to read this table

Seasonality varies by cycle and can be overridden by macro/liquidity shocks.
Treat month effects as background bias, not a trading rule.

What this shows

Late-year months often coincide with risk-on phases and cycle accelerations.
Weak months line up with position resets and lower participation (summer).

Bitcoin vs. Traditional Assets (Scale Check)

A size check helps anchor expectations. Here’s how Bitcoin stacks up against major asset classes.

Market cap comparison

Asset	Market Cap (USD)
Bitcoin	$2.24T
Gold	$17.85T
U.S. Dollar (M2)	$21.35T
U.S. Stock Market	$58T

How to read this table

Bitcoin is already a multi-trillion asset but still far smaller than gold and equities.
The gap between gold and stocks shows room for re-rating during risk-on macro cycles.
Larger base also means shallower percentage swings versus early years, even if dollar moves are big.

What this shows

Bitcoin has crossed into institutional scale, which supports broader adoption.
Future upside depends on share-of-value captured from stores of value and risk assets, not just crypto-native flows.

Models Corner: Stock-to-Flow (Use With Caution)

Stock-to-Flow (S2F) compares existing supply (“stock”) to new issuance (“flow”). Bitcoin’s block reward halves every ~4 years, so the S2F ratio rises over time and the model projects higher price ranges after each halving. It’s a lens, not a promise.

Input snapshot

Metric	Value
Current S2F ratio (post-2024 halving)	56
Next halving year	2028
Projected S2F after 2028	112

Projected price ranges

Year	Low	High	Mid
2025	$120,000	$180,000	$150,000
2026	$200,000	$300,000	$250,000
2027	$350,000	$500,000	$425,000
2028	$500,000	$1,000,000	$750,000

How to use this section

Treat S2F as a scenario range anchored to supply, not a timing tool.
Real-world outcomes depend on liquidity, demand, regulation, and leverage.
Past cycles showed large deviations from S2F paths during shocks (exchange failures, macro stress).

Bottom line

S2F is helpful for framing long-run scarcity, but decisions should also consider adoption, market depth, and risk conditions covered elsewhere in this report.

The 4-Year Framework: What History Suggests

Bitcoin’s market rhythm lines up with the halving schedule. Supply gets cut, demand adapts with a lag, and price discovers a new range. The exact timing varies, but the pattern repeats.

Cycle checkpoints

Phase	Typical Window	What Changes	Markers in the Data	What to Watch Next
Pre-Halving Setup	~6–12 months before halving	Positioning builds; narratives form	Rising addresses; steady hashrate growth	Liquidity in USD, leverage in derivatives
Halving Event	Halving month	New issuance halves	Block reward cut (e.g., 6.25 → 3.125 BTC in 2024)	Miner margins, fee share in miner revenue
Post-Halving Expansion	~6–18 months after	Demand meets reduced flow	Strong YoY gains (2013, 2017, 2021, 2024)	ETF/treasury flows, policy headlines
Mid-Cycle Shakeouts	Any time	Overheated leverage resets	Sharp drawdowns (2018, 2020 shock, 2022, Mar/Oct 2025)	Funding rates, open interest, credit stress
Late-Cycle Distribution	After new highs	Gains slow; volatility compresses	Lower daily vol vs. prior spikes	Net flows cooling, breadth narrowing
Bear/Reset	6–18 months	Deleveraging; bases form	Deep drawdowns, then higher lows vs. prior cycle	Spot bid strength, time above prior ATH

What this framework tells you

Supply anchors the rhythm; demand sets the amplitude. Halvings create the backdrop; access improvements (ETFs, corporate treasuries) decide how far and how fast the expansion runs.
Recoveries arrive faster on a larger base. Later cycles show shallower, shorter shocks and quicker stabilization near higher floors.
Volatility is path-dependent. It spikes in stress windows, then trends lower as participation broadens and plumbing improves.

Positioning 2025 in this map

We’re in the early post-halving phase with ETF demand in the mix. The dataset shows a strong 2024 print, a high base into 2025, and quick stabilization after shocks. Next checkpoints: durability of inflows, miner economics post-cut, and how policy/liquidity shape the remainder of the cycle.

Risks & What to Watch

Short, practical checklist. Each risk links to a metric already shown in our tables.

Core Risks

Risk	Why It Matters	Where It Showed Up
Liquidity Shocks	Forced selling widens moves and gaps order books.	2020 COVID drop; Mar 2025 liquidation wave; Oct 2025 tariff dip.
Counterparty/Credit	Exchange or lender failures trigger cascades.	2014 Mt. Gox; 2022 Terra/FTX.
Policy/Regulation	Access can expand or shrink quickly.	2024 ETF approvals (positive); earlier China mining ban.
Miner Economics	Post-halving margins affect hashpower stability.	2024 reward cut to 3.125 BTC.
Leverage & Derivatives	Overheated funding/OI precede liquidations.	Mar 2025 wave in dataset.
Narrative/Flow Reversal	ETF/treasury inflows slow; retail fatigues.	Late-cycle cool-downs after new highs.

What to Monitor

Watchlist Item	Proxy Metric (from this report)	Signal to Track
Market Depth & Stress	Drawdowns table; Volatility table	Faster/shallower selloffs vs. prior cycles.
Institutional Demand	Adoption milestones; Market cap table	Persistence of ETF/treasury accumulation.
Supply Dynamics	Halvings table	Post-halving year-over-year prints.
Network Security	Hashrate table	Stable or rising after reward cuts.
User Base Growth	Addresses table	Continued expansion toward new cohorts.
Settlement Activity	Annual settlement table	Higher USD throughput beyond price moves.

Bottom line

Large shocks still happen, but later cycles recover faster on a bigger base. Keep one eye on flows and credit (where crashes begin) and one eye on network and supply (why recoveries endure).

Final Summary

Bitcoin’s history in tables shows a clear pattern: supply halves on schedule, adoption expands in waves, and price grinds higher across cycles despite deep setbacks. Floors rise, recoveries come faster, and volatility trends lower outside shock windows.

What matters now:

Flows and credit drive crashes. Track liquidity, leverage, and counterparty risk.
Network and supply drive recoveries. Rising hashrate, growing addresses, and fixed issuance anchor the long term.
Access sets the amplitude. ETFs and institutional rails change who can buy, how much, and how often.

The current cycle is post-halving and ETF-enabled: steadier demand against lower new supply, with faster sentiment swings on headlines. Use the tables in this report as a checklist — price and market cap (pace), halvings (regime), drawdowns and volatility (stress), adoption milestones (access), and network metrics (durability).

Data doesn’t promise outcomes. It frames them. Stay focused on flows and credit for risk, and on network and supply for staying power.