Cryptocurrency YouTube views hit a 5-year low! X platform also plummets as retail investors flee

YouTube viewership of cryptocurrency content drops to the lowest level since January 2021, with platform engagement simultaneously crashing. ITC Crypto founder Benjamin Cowen points out that this is not just an algorithm issue but a systemic decline across platforms. Retail investors, exhausted by scams and pump-and-dump strategies, are shifting towards assets like precious metals that outperform Bitcoin. Institutional dominance characterizes this cycle, with retail investors retreating to become the new normal.

YouTube Viewership Plummets to 2021 Levels in Shocking Data

On Sunday, ITC Crypto founder Benjamin Cowen shared the 30-day moving average views of various cryptocurrency YouTube channels, highlighting the decline in viewership. Over the past three months, crypto content views on YouTube have plummeted sharply, now reaching the lowest levels since January 2021. This timing is highly ironic, as January 2021 marked the start of the last bull run’s acceleration, when retail interest was heating up. Now, with Bitcoin reaching $100,000, social attention has returned to levels seen four years ago.

Crypto YouTuber Tom Crown commented, “It’s crashing across all platforms, and since October, there’s been a noticeable dip in certain regions. In fact, since 2021, it’s been in a ‘bear market,’ never approaching those highs.” This comment reveals a harsh reality: despite prices reaching new highs in 2024-2025, social media buzz has never recovered to the 2021 bull market levels.

Similarly, YouTube content creator Jesus Martinez expressed his view, saying his channel has been growing since early 2022, adding, “I’ve experienced some peaks, but nothing compares to the videos I made during the 2021 peak.” This personal account supports data indicating that declining viewership is not an isolated phenomenon but a widespread challenge across the entire crypto content creation ecosystem.

“This is basically a bear-market level of social attention,” said Bitcoin investor “Polaris XBT.” The comment is highly ironic: when prices are in a bull market, social attention is at bear-market levels. This divergence is extremely rare in crypto history, where price and attention are usually positively correlated. This abnormality suggests that the current cycle is fundamentally different from past ones.

Systemic Crisis of Cross-Platform and Multi-Platform Collapse

Benjamin Cowen emphasized in sharing data: “So this isn’t just about X and algorithm changes.” This comment responds to many creators blaming the decline in views on changes to X’s platform algorithm. Indeed, since Elon Musk acquired Twitter and renamed it X, many crypto influencers have reported a significant drop in their post reach. But Cowen’s data shows that this is not just a platform-specific issue.

Three Major Evidence of Multi-Platform Traffic Collapse

YouTube Views: Dropped to the lowest since January 2021, with the 30-day moving average continuously declining

X Platform Engagement: Crypto post interactions, retweets, and comments all plummeted simultaneously

TikTok and Instagram: Although less publicly available, creators report similarly weak traffic

Search Trends: Google Trends shows that search volumes for “Bitcoin,” “Crypto,” and related keywords are far below 2021 levels

Crown’s comment that “it’s crashing across all platforms” resonated widely. This cross-platform synchronized decline indicates the problem is not solely due to algorithm changes but reflects a fundamental decrease in user demand for crypto content. Regardless of where creators publish, they face the same dilemma: audiences are no longer as enthusiastic about consuming crypto-related information as they were in the past.

This phenomenon reflects a systemic decline in retail participation. During the 2021 bull market, a large influx of newcomers entered the crypto space, eager to learn, track market movements, and find the next big opportunity. YouTube tutorials, X posts calling out trades, Telegram group discussions were all abnormally lively. But after painful losses in the 2022 bear market and subsequent volatility in 2023-2024, many retail investors have exited the market or adopted a “HODL” attitude, consuming content less frequently.

Scam Fatigue and the New Normal of Institutional Dominance

TikTok creator “Cloud9 Markets” suggests that this may also be related to scams involving Ponzi-like altcoins and pump-and-dump strategies. “Retailers are tired of being scammed,” they add. This insight hits the core issue: over the past few years, the crypto market has been flooded with scams—from Luna/UST collapse to FTX fraud, Rug Pulls, and meme coin pump-and-dumps—causing retail investors to lose confidence through repeated losses.

When every new project claims to be “the next 100x coin,” and every KOL recommends “guaranteed moonshots,” but ultimately retail investors are the ones buying in, skepticism about the entire content ecosystem grows. This trust crisis not only affects scam project traffic but also impacts high-quality creators providing legitimate information. Users start to doubt all crypto content, preferring to stay away rather than risk being misled.

Marc Shawn Brown, head of social media at Cointelegraph, pointed out: “They may have shifted to precious metals/macro-economic sectors. People want returns, not stories about when they’ll get returns. 2025 will be tough. Bitcoin’s return is -7%, while palladium, rhodium, cobalt, silver, and gold are outperforming Bitcoin.” This observation reveals a shift in capital flows: when crypto returns are disappointing, investors vote with their feet.

This trend also reinforces the view that institutions have dominated the market during this cycle, with retail investors retreating to the background. The launch of Bitcoin ETFs allows institutions to allocate Bitcoin through compliant channels without relying on YouTube tutorials or X analysis posts. Institutional investors depend on Bloomberg terminals, research reports, and professional advisors, not social media content. Therefore, even if institutional funds continue to flow in and push prices higher, social media attention may remain subdued.

However, it’s not all bad news. On-chain analytics platform Santiment stated on Friday that social sentiment toward Bitcoin “is clearly becoming more positive, with at least some signs of a slight reversal in the downward trend.” The report also highlighted that the $90,000 level is crucial for retail optimism. If Bitcoin can stabilize above $100,000 and continue to reach new highs, it could rekindle retail enthusiasm and drive social media traffic higher.