.png){kind=logo}
The last four weeks have been far from impressive in the crypto market, with the Bitcoin price plummeting by about 28%. However, this trend is not that different from the events of 2025 over the same period.
While the BTC has only lost about 10% of value between mid January and February 10, 2025, that downward movement culminated in a 20% decline by April.
Still, Bitcoin ended up enjoying one of its best rallies in history that saw it touch a staggering $126,000. What is happening now appears to be a sharp "reality check" for the market, with prices retracing toward the $60,000–$70,000 range.
Yet, even with 40% to 60% declines from the all-time highs of various cryptocurrencies, traders continue to show resilience. Despite the recent market turmoil, according to Capital.com, the most traded cryptos show that at least 85% of trades across Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETC), and Ripple (XRP) are bullish. But traders are not the only ones holding a positive sentiment, with leading market analysts also not seeing the current downturn lasting long.
While Crypto’s recent pullback is the sharpest in years, it lacks major fundamentals to support an extended bearish run. Analysts at Bernstein have labeled it the "weakest bear case" in crypto history.
The 2022 "Crypto Winter" was fueled by the systemic collapses of FTX and Terra/Luna. According to Bernstein, the 2026 dip lacks a fundamental "villain,” with no major insolvent lenders or hidden leverage bubbles as was the case three and a half years ago.
So, what’s driving the decline? It is mostly due to the crypto market’s growing correlation with mainstream industries, like tech, amid the influx of traditional financial institutions into the industry. Therefore, as the Federal Reserve weighs "higher for longer" interest rates, Bitcoin and the wider crypto market have consequently been affected.
Over the past few years, crypto has attracted a significant inflow of capital from institutional investors through real-world asset tokenization, digital asset treasuries (DATs), and crypto ETFs.
In the previous crypto market bear cycles, a 45% dip in price would have triggered mass liquidations from retail investors. However, with ownership shifting to institutional through DATs and ETFs, it is a much calmer situation, which creates a stronger bedrock for recovery.
For instance, companies like MicroStrategy continue to buy the dip, recently adding over 1,100 BTC at the height of the latest crash.
While the current bear market will no doubt cause some jitters, there is a lot to look forward to in 2026 that could define the next bull run.
The AI-Crypto Convergence: This catalyst emanates from the expectation that autonomous AI agents adopt "AI Wallets" to transact on-chain, creating a new layer of non-human economic activity.
RWA tokenization advanced to the next phase: The value of on-chain real-world assets (government bonds and private loans) grew fourfold in 2025 and is now scaling toward production levels this year. Tokenized U.S. stocks are only beginning to penetrate the market, with clearer regulations expected to take this segment of the market to the next level.
Although the latest crash in crypto prices erased nearly $500 billion in total market cap, the underlying utility of the technology remains intact.
According to industry players, crypto is in a state of transition from speculative mania to structural growth. Animoca Brands’ Yat Siu was recently quoted.
Therefore, if the support zone around $60,000 holds, this may become one of the most attractive opportunities to buy Bitcoin and other popular cryptocurrencies in recent years.
