



During the earliest stages of Bitcoin’s popularity, the currency was regularly praised as a great way to handle high-value transactions. Since Bitcoin’s highest value to date back in 2017, however, the currency’s median transaction value has dropped sharply.





According to BitInfoCharts, the median Bitcoin transaction has gone from over $5,000 USD to $390 in less than two years. Some sources, such as Coin Metrics, claim Bitcoin’s median transaction value is as low as $82.

Bitcoin: the world’s practical new remittance tool





As LongHash recently observed, the median Bitcoin transaction is valued significantly higher than both the median Bitcoin Cash (BCH) transaction and the median Bitcoin SV (BSV) transaction. When it comes to the broader crypto market, on the other hand, Bitcoin currently ranks 35th in median transaction value on Messari.io.





For context, it’s important to remember that one of the original driving forces behind Bitcoin’s popularity is its potential use as a remittance tool.





Bitcoin uses a flat fee when it comes to calculating the cost of sending payments. As a result, the cost of a transaction is generally not affected by the amount of money being sent. Historically, this has made Bitcoin a practical way to send high-value transactions with a comparatively low fee, but a largely unfeasible way to carry out small, everyday transactions.

Bitcoin’s change in transaction value may reflect a change in purpose





Bitcoin has made significant progress when it comes to the fees associated with its transactions. During Bitcoin’s price peak in 2017, many viewed the asset’s transaction fees as being too high to justify sending small payments.





Earlier this year, the cost of sending a Bitcoin transaction (denominated in the currency itself) reached its lowest level in six years. Back when Bitcoin’s median transaction value was north of $5,000 USD, the median transaction fee was as high as 226,000 satoshis. At the time of writing, this equates to a fee of around $13 USD — regardless of how much money the user intended to send.





The drop in transaction value could also reflect the fact that Bitcoin is being used for a wider variety of purposes. As currencies like the Venezuelan bolivar continue to suffer from severe inflation, for example, many turn to other national currencies or even cryptocurrencies in order to carry out everyday payments.





Others would argue, however, that Bitcoin’s comparatively low median transaction value could be a sign that investors are placing less trust in the Bitcoin blockchain. It could even mean that some users are turning to other cryptocurrencies for remittance solutions.





Objectively speaking, one thing is for certain: Bitcoin’s fundamentals are constantly evolving alongside changes in both its underlying technology and public perception.





