On-chain data shows the crypto sector has witnessed the largest decline in the monthly Realized Cap since the previous bear market.
In a new post on X, Glassnode analyst Chris Beamish has discussed the latest trend in capital flows for the crypto market. While the digital asset sector is large, most of the capital that enters or leaves it does so through three main segments: Bitcoin, Ethereum, and the stablecoins.
Investors first inject capital into these primary assets, and then it rotates out into the riskier altcoins. Similarly, when exiting from the market, traders tend to sell altcoins first and move their capital into Bitcoin or stablecoins.
An on-chain indicator that can be used to track sector flows is the Realized Cap. This capitalization model calculates an asset’s total value by assuming that the ‘real’ value of any token in circulation is equal to the last spot price it was moved at. This approach is different from that of the usual market cap, which simply sums up the supply at the current spot price.
The last transaction price of any coin can be thought to represent its current cost basis, so the Realized Cap is essentially a sum of the acquisition value for the entire supply. As such, the indicator can be considered as a measure of the total amount of capital that investors have put into the cryptocurrency.
Whenever this metric’s value changes, capital leaves or enters the asset, based on the direction of the change. Below is the chart shared by Beamish that shows the trend in the monthly change in the Realized Cap for Bitcoin, Ethereum, and the stablecoins.
The value of the metric seems to have been deeply negative in recent days | Source: @ChrisBeamish_ on X
As displayed in the graph, the Realized Cap netflow for these primary assets, serving as a proxy of the demand in the crypto sector as a whole, has plummeted deep into the negative zone recently.
During most of 2025, this indicator was at positive levels, indicating that capital was consistently flowing into the sector. The trend ended up flipping in December, as outflows started taking place instead.
As the crypto market downturn has only deepened in 2026, capital outflows have also intensified on a monthly scale. Today, the indicator is at its most red level since the 2022 bear market.
In the same chart, the data for Bitcoin + Ethereum and the stablecoins is also separately displayed. It would appear that the recent outflows are mostly driven by the combined BTC and ETH Realized Cap, while the stables have seen their netflow sit at a more-or-less neutral level.
At the time of writing, Bitcoin is trading around $67,100, up 1% over the last week.
Looks like the price of the coin has been moving sideways | Source: BTCUSDT on TradingView
Featured image from Dall-E, chart from TradingView.com
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