Bitcoin adoption grows despite 50% price drop: River

Financial services firm River reported that Bitcoin adoption increased in 2025 even as the price fell about 50% from its October peak. The company points to rising use across Wall Street, retail payments and government entities.

Merchant acceptance and payments activity accelerated. In the United States, the number of businesses taking Bitcoin for purchases tripled in 2025, while River estimates global merchant usage increased 74%. Payments over the Lightning Network, a system designed to make Bitcoin transactions faster and cheaper, grew 300% and are processing more than $1.1 billion in monthly volume by River’s estimate.

Institutional participation expanded. Registered investment advisors were net buyers for eight straight quarters and directed roughly $1.5 billion per quarter into Bitcoin exchange-traded funds over the past two years, the report notes. Businesses were the largest buyers in 2025, with most purchases tied to crypto treasury firms, a cohort River says grew 2.5 times year over year. On banking, the firm reports that 60% of the top U.S. banks are building Bitcoin products. The report describes a U.S. regulatory backdrop that enables banks to custody Bitcoin and offer related services to customers.

Government involvement grew as well. River identifies five new nation-states that became Bitcoin owners in 2025, including purchases by sovereign wealth funds in Luxembourg and Saudi Arabia, a central bank in the Czech Republic, and acquisitions linked to Brazil and Taiwan. In total, the firm estimates 23 nation-states hold Bitcoin through state-backed mining, seizures or central bank exposure.

River highlights a decline in Bitcoin’s price volatility, describing levels that are edging closer to those seen in gold and the S&P 500. According to the report, lower volatility can reduce the barrier for more risk-averse investors and may open access to larger capital pools over time.

“There is no bear market in Bitcoin adoption,” the report states. “With a favorable regulatory environment in the U.S., banks can now custody Bitcoin and offer Bitcoin products to their customers.”

The document depicts 2025 as a year in which activity across advisory channels, corporate treasuries, banks, merchants and sovereign entities expanded even as spot prices declined.