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Revived Year Loss

Cumulative realized loss per representative vintage cohort - exposes which generations bore the heaviest capitulation across cycles.

Tier performanceOn-chain Bitcoinrevivedyearvintagelosscapitulationdeep-dive

What is it?

Revived Year Loss measures, per vintage class, the cumulative USD loss realized since genesis. For each 2009/2017/2024 vintage, we cumulate the sum of this cohort's spent UTXOs at a loss. This series is strictly monotonic increasing (cumulative). It exposes each generation's historical 'total damage': how much capital has been definitively lost by this cohort across cycles. Complementary information to #321 Profit for net PnL (#322 = #321 - #320).

How to read

Multi-line USD log scale, monotone non-decreasing (cumulative). An almost-flat line marks a cohort that has hardly ever realized losses (typical of 2009 OG vintage: when they spend, it is in massive profit). A regularly growing line marks continuous capitulation (typical of 2017/2021 vintages in following bear markets).

Key zones

The 2009 vintage typically has near-zero cumulative Loss (Patoshi coins that moved did so at infinitely higher prices than their ~$0 cost basis). The 2017 vintage has significant cumulative Loss accumulated over 2018 (bear market), 2022 (Luna/FTX). The 2024 vintage (young) has still moderate cumulative Loss, awaiting future bear markets.

What to observe

Watch slope inflections: a vintage accelerating its cumulative Loss in a short time marks deep capitulation of this generation. Compare vintages: if 2017 and 2024 accelerate simultaneously, it is a multi-cohort bear market. If only 2024 accelerates, it is specific late-comers (typical of late bull cycle 4 + early bear cycle 5).

Historical context

Historical bear markets (2018, 2022) each generated visible inflexions on 2017+ vintages (cohorts with cost basis > bear price). The 2009 vintage has very little Loss history: the rare times Patoshi-era coins moved, they were massively in profit. This series reveals the historical stratification of 'cumulative damage' by generation.

Expert notes

This series uses the class_YYYY_realized_loss_cumulative variants (200 OK on the public API, unlike the cost basis variant which is 404). The ≥ 1 year eligibility threshold does not apply here as cumulative includes all historical spends. For premium analysis, compute the Loss / Cost Value (snapshot) ratio per vintage: it is the equivalent of a 'loss factor' measuring what proportion of live cost basis has previously been realized at a loss.

Common mistakes to avoid

Common mistake: interpreting a high cumulative Loss as 'this generation's holders are losing right now'. Cumulative only measures past realized losses, not current situation. To evaluate current pressure, use #315 Revived Supply Loss (daily flow). Cumulative is a fixed history, flow is the instant image.

Programmatic access

REST API

curl -sS \
  'https://api.trinityinsights.io/api/v1/onchain/revived-year-loss/history?days=90' \
  -H 'X-API-Key: $TRINITY_API_KEY'

MCP server

{
  "tool": "get_chart_value",
  "metric_id": "revived-year-loss",
  "timeframe": "1y"
}

Required tier: performance. See the pricing grid for the tier list and the MCP documentation for multi-client configuration.

Related metrics

Institutional disclaimer

Trinity Insights is an educational and analytical tool. The metric above does not constitute investment advice. Trinity Insights is not a Crypto-Asset Service Provider (CASP) registered under MiCA Regulation (EU) 2023/1114. See the full disclaimer.