The Bitcoin blockchain has experienced a dramatic surge in network activity, with daily transactions soaring to approximately 615,000—the highest level recorded since 2024. This sharp rebound in on-chain activity, following months of subdued metrics, comes with the surprising twist that transaction fees have remained notably low, defying typical market logic where high demand drives up costs.
In a new thread on X, on-chain analytics firm CryptoQuant has discussed the revival that the Bitcoin network activity has witnessed recently. CryptoQuant has cited its “Network Activity Index” to showcase the rebound. This index combines the data related to different metrics like active addresses and transactions to provide an overview of the blockchain.
From the above chart, it’s visible that the Bitcoin Network Activity Index plunged below its 365-day moving average (MA) back in late 2024 and remained in a downtrend during 2025. The trajectory continued into the first quarter of 2026, but since the onset of the second quarter, fates appear to have flipped for the indicator.
Not only has the Network Activity Index managed to break past its 365-day MA, it has done so in a sharp manner, with its value shooting up. The reversal in the indicator has come alongside a sharp surge in the total number of transactions occurring on the Bitcoin network.
As displayed in the graph, the 7-day simple moving average (SMA) of the Bitcoin transaction count was muted earlier, but a recent sharp revival has meant that its value has reached a high of 615,000. This is the most amount of transfers on the BTC blockchain since November 2024, when the activity decline began.
Interestingly, while transactions have shot up, the total fees that Bitcoin miners are earning on the network have stayed at low levels.
The transaction fees can correlate with the demand for using the network that exists among users. The BTC blockchain only has a limited capacity to handle transfers, so in periods of network congestion, the average fees can blow up as senders compete against each other to get transfers through first. In contrast, when there isn’t much demand for getting moves through quickly, the fees can stay at low levels.
The Network Activity Index suggests that the Bitcoin network has observed a spike in usage, but the fees staying low could imply that the source may not entirely be organic demand, but rather a result of exchanges, custodians, and large holders taking advantage of the current low fee competition environment to make operational moves like UTXO management and wallet reshuffling.
Bitcoin recovered above $70,000 on Monday, but the coin has since retraced back to $69,000.
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