The “stripper index” — an anecdotal measurement that connects financial well being with spending on grownup leisure — seems unable to foretell Bitcoin’s (BTC) value.
Kodi Rose, a self-described “greenback stripper” and grownup content material creator, alluded to those frontline insights in a latest viral TikTok video, saying she believes the financial system is already in a recession as fewer prospects are asking the place they’ll “hit the slopes,” a social code for cocaine.
The digital equal of unique dancers is grownup content material creators, and OnlyFans dominates the house. On the platform, customers subscribe to creators and tip for extras.
Seems the stripper index doesn’t actually work for Bitcoin. A 57-month income evaluation of 1 mid-tier OnlyFans creator reveals a adverse correlation with Bitcoin’s value, regardless of the 2 transferring in the identical route greater than half the time.
To know whether or not creators’ earnings holds any predictive worth for Bitcoin, Cointelegraph spoke to veterans within the grownup leisure business who’ve weathered each its ups and downs alongside crypto’s hype cycles.
Bitcoin adopted OnlyFans mannequin’s earnings 55% of the time
The stripper index is backed by the idea that buyers will reduce down on non-essential spending throughout financial downturns.
“Intercourse work is taken into account a ‘non-essential’ service — it’s leisure, a luxurious. Due to this fact, it’s one of many first bills individuals reduce when their monetary scenario turns into unsure or they anticipate financial instability,” Catherine De Noire, an OnlyFans creator and brothel supervisor, informed Cointelegraph.
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Alana Nguyen, who performs on OnlyFans beneath the stage identify “Nerdy Dancing,” shared her month-to-month earnings with Cointelegraph since transferring on-line after the 2020 pandemic shut down of the bodily world, together with strip golf equipment. Thus far, she hasn’t observed any clear correlation between crypto costs and subscriber conduct.
“Even when there are world financial circumstances affecting general spending, I don’t assume crypto costs correlate strongly with my earnings,” Nguyen informed Cointelegraph.
A Pearson correlation coefficient of -0.335 over 57 months suggests a reasonably adverse linear relationship between Nguyen’s earnings and Bitcoin’s value.
A ten-month rolling Pearson correlation between Nguyen’s earnings and Bitcoin’s value confirmed appreciable volatility over time. The very best correlation was noticed within the 10-month interval ending July 2021, which had been the primary months of Nguyen’s enterprise.
Out of 48 whole calculations, the rolling correlation coefficient was evenly cut up, with 24 constructive and 24 adverse values, suggesting the connection between Nguyen’s earnings and Bitcoin’s value fluctuated with no constant sample. The rolling correlation hardly ever went above 0.5 or under -0.5, indicating low correlation.
In a separate measurement, Cointelegraph analyzed whether or not or not Nguyen’s earnings rose when Bitcoin’s month-to-month common rose in comparison with the earlier month and when her income dropped as Bitcoin dropped. On this measurement, the 2 moved towards the identical route nearly half the time, with 55% accuracy over 57 months.
“I’ve at all times thought ideas just like the stripper index are solely helpful when it comes to combination spending. Even within the strip membership, my earnings aren’t essentially tied to how the membership is doing general. It’s extra about my private promoting skill that day — whether or not regulars are available in or I get fortunate with a giant spender,” Nguyen stated.
OnlyFans is infamous for opaque monetary reporting. One web site, OnlyGuider, claims to have analyzed the transaction conduct of over 1 million subscribers and located that the highest 0.1% of creators earn nearly all of the platform’s income.
In accordance with knowledge from OnlyGuider shared with Cointelegraph, the highest 0.1% of creators earned $2,035,331 in April 2025, when Bitcoin’s common value was $94,207. As Bitcoin costs continued to rise in Could and June, earnings for the highest 0.1% additionally elevated, reaching $2,038,972 in Could and $2,052,502 in June.
Bitcoin’s relationship with OnlyFans and grownup leisure
Crypto was as soon as seen as a substitute software for facilitating funds to grownup content material creators. Pornhub, one of many business’s largest platforms, started accepting cryptocurrency as early as 2018. OnlyFans, nevertheless, has taken a unique path and doesn’t provide crypto as a fee technique.
“Crypto funds should not very fashionable in our brothel. Most purchasers desire money as a result of it leaves no hint. Solely a really small variety of the ladies working with us settle for crypto funds, and even then, the whole variety of transactions per yr is extraordinarily low,” De Noire stated.
“We haven’t observed any vital change in spending conduct that corresponds with crypto fluctuations. Whether or not Bitcoin or Ethereum is performing effectively or not doesn’t appear to have a direct impact on how a lot our purchasers are keen to spend,” she added.
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Erotic movie star Allie Eve Knox has stronger ties to the crypto neighborhood as an advocate for integrating cryptocurrency into the grownup business and thru her involvement with SpankChain, which launched initiatives like SpankPay, a crypto fee possibility for grownup creators that has since been discontinued.
Knox, who presents her content material on a number of platforms, together with OnlyFans, agreed that the value of Bitcoin doesn’t seem to have a significant impression on her earnings.
“Anytime crypto hits an all-time excessive, our visitors truly slows,” Knox informed Cointelegraph.
“Individuals need to see the largest quantity of their account and screenshot it. It’s not typical for them to go passing out cash to get their wanks.”
Knox has been within the grownup leisure business for 11 years and says she’s skilled 36 account closures over her profession — from financial institution accounts to Money App and PayPal. Crypto provided an alternate option to settle for funds, however satirically, she claims she was de-banked even by crypto platforms.
“I confirmed a Showtime documentary crew how I might show my Coinbase QR code on digital camera, and viewers might pay me in Bitcoin or Ether. The day after it aired, Coinbase shut my account down.”
Fashionable fee choices — whether or not crypto or digital banking — make transactions simpler for each shoppers and companies. Nonetheless, digital strategies nonetheless draw scrutiny from banks when utilized by intercourse staff. In brothels, purchasers usually desire money, typically even leaving mid-session to withdraw cash from an ATM, De Noire stated.
“As an OnlyFans creator, nevertheless, I discover one thing just a little bit related. My subscribers typically haven’t any situation utilizing bank cards and belief the platform. But lots of them nonetheless ask if they’ll pay through Bitcoin or different different strategies,” she stated.
“Since OF doesn’t enable funds exterior the platform, I haven’t pursued this additional, nevertheless it’s clear that even on-line purchasers are searching for extra privateness and management over the information they share with monetary establishments.”
Bitcoin’s honeymoon with OnlyFans fashions has handed
Web3 and grownup content material had their “good previous days,” in response to Knox, who says the non-fungible token (NFT) growth of 2021 opened up new earnings streams and gave creators extra choices to succeed in followers and spend their crypto earnings.
“Now, if a buyer doesn’t already maintain crypto, they’ve to maneuver cash from their financial institution, look forward to it to clear right into a pockets, perhaps convert it, ship it to a mannequin, look forward to affirmation and solely then do they get the content material,” she stated.
Creators are additionally dealing with growing obstacles worldwide. Lately, China launched a nationwide crackdown on OnlyFans, whereas Sweden, a nation that’s politically and culturally very completely different from China, has imposed restrictions on buying grownup content material.
De Noire cited sociologist Zygmunt Bauman to level out that in as we speak’s society, shoppers aren’t simply attempting to outlive, however they prioritize enjoyment.
“Once you see a number of non-essential providers like massages, fancy espresso, wellness retreats and even intercourse work getting used usually, it’s an indication that the society has sufficient cash going round,” De Noire stated.
Whereas cryptocurrency was as soon as hailed as a promising fee answer for grownup content material creators dealing with monetary censorship, the fact is extra complicated. Regardless of pockets of overlap, reminiscent of simultaneous rises in Bitcoin costs and earnings amongst high OnlyFans creators, grownup entertainers and their earnings have proven little correlation with Bitcoin’s value tendencies.
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