Bitcoin is currently trading above $110,000, while Google Trends data for the keyword "bitcoin" is at 38. This afternoon, a bartender in Midtown Manhattan will glance at a phone screen displaying the amount $110,630. He will shrug and continue frothing milk.
This sentiment aligns with the data as search volume for this keyword remained low at 40 for several months, a similar level when Bitcoin was priced below $30,000. Perhaps we are entering "FIAMO," an acronym for fear of missing out.
Instead, large flows of money are moving. BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust frequently brings in many times more than what miners produce. Bitwise Director Hunter Horsley noted this contrast. He told FinanceFeeds that "Public interest, especially among ordinary investors, has decreased significantly," "even as prices soared to new highs."
The Figures Return FIAMO Narrative
Trading volumes support the FIAMO viewpoint as Coinbase processed $78 billion in retail transactions in the first quarter of 2025, just half the average of 2021.
The exchange saw explosive growth in 2021 as retail activity surged more than 7 times compared to 2020, reflecting the overall price increase in cryptocurrency. Then, the cryptocurrency winter hit retail the hardest, with volumes dropping 69% in 2022 and another 55% in 2023.
In 2024, prices recovered, the approval of U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs, and improved market sentiment drove retail volumes up 195% year-over-year. Currently, retail spot volumes in Q1 2025 have decreased from Q4 2024 but remain higher than any quarter in 2023, thanks to new all-time highs for Bitcoin at the beginning of the year.
People cannot or do not want to buy a whole coin, and many still feel that fractions look like scraps.
While the unit deviation is merely arithmetic, it is very powerful psychologically. Exchanges promote "buy $10 BTC," but a six-figure sticker shocks newcomers. Owning 0.001 BTC seems small, although it equals the full spot price from 2013. Until wallets speak in satoshis, that mental barrier will remain.
Moreover, the memory of the collapse in 2022 still haunts, with many waiting for redemption or having lost a significant amount of money. FTX, Celsius, and Three Arrows vanished for weeks, wiping out savings and the confidence of a lifetime. Many small traders have promised themselves that they will never chase parabolic charts again. That promise now appears in every flat search curve.
Veteran experts say the calm will not last because capital flowing through ETFs is often filtered into broader retail channels later, as friends and family notice profits from retirement reports. A similar delay occurred after the gold ETF boom in 2005. Thus, the next wave may come with a gentler face, automated salary purchases instead of late-night leverage.
However, pension funds in Wisconsin will no longer see profits after selling all their Bitcoin ETF holdings and realizing significant gains.
However, the quiet search chart has misled the crowd before. In previous cycles, the Google curve peaked months after the price highs, after headlines seeped into ordinary investors. If history repeats itself, FIAMO may return to old FOMO.
Politics And Bitcoin
Politics now also adds another layer to the zeitgeist around Bitcoin and cryptocurrency. President Donald Trump believes that "Our country must be a leader in this space" and is a staunch supporter of Bitcoin, aiming to implement a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve.
Trump's changing attitude towards Bitcoin transforms it from a rebel asset to a state resource, a shift that inevitably diminishes the excitement of some weekend traders, especially those outside the U.S. who have a 'less than positive' view of this man.
The close association of Bitcoin with right-wing politics may negatively affect those on the other side of the political spectrum. However, I believe the politicization of Bitcoin is the fault of both parties. Politicians criticizing Trump’s broader policies should detach Bitcoin from those issues.
Bitcoin has no partisan or political affiliation in the traditional financial system.
Until we escape fiat money, it's either Bitcoin or nothing.
As Satoshi said,
"Perhaps instead, focus on open-source projects and acknowledge more of your development contributors; this helps motivate them."
Currently, the signals are quite clear: ETFs are absorbing supply, the policy surrounding Bitcoin in reserve language is virtually unchanged, and Google Trends' trajectory is barely moving. The largest digital asset continues to break every conceivable record while most viewers hardly look up.
