The Marc My Words Show '26 series #10: Bitcoin Adoptie Breekt Records - Waarom Dit Geen Bear Market Is | Sam Wouters
Mar 11, 2026
Sam Wouters, Director of Marketing at River and co-author of River Research, shares data-driven views on Bitcoin adoption and the Lightning Network. He discusses why adoption is breaking records, Lightning’s explosive payment volume growth, and how institutions and ETFs are reshaping who holds Bitcoin. The conversation also covers AI, stablecoins, and why adoption can rise even if price falls.
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Realistic Expectations Make Bitcoin Critiques Misleading
- Criticisms that Bitcoin 'failed as money' ignore realistic expectations; Bitcoin doesn't need instant universal use to succeed.
- Sam compares technological adoption to flight: not every person uses it simultaneously yet it's still transformative and growing in adoption.
AI Agents Could Prefer Bitcoin And Stablecoins
- AI and stablecoins both rank highly as payment primitives for future digital agents; River cites a survey where ~53% of AI models chose Bitcoin.
- Sam suggests AI agents and stablecoins may coexist, each serving distinct economic roles in automation and payments.
Lightning Volume Jump Shows Network Effects
- Lightning monthly volume surged from ~$250M to ~$1.2B, indicating exponential network effect growth rather than linear adoption.
- Sam attributes growth to exchange integration, merchant onboarding (Square, Strike) and both public and unknown private channel volume driving transaction counts.