The price of Bitcoin suffered its worst rally in recent years, falling by double digits last week. Although the top cryptocurrency appears to be recovering well over the past day, the 14% intraday correction on Thursday, February 5th was an event that instilled fear in the market, and rightly so. In his latest report, the renowned expert tried to find answers to the questions currently swirling around the price of Bitcoin.
Cryptocurrency bear markets end in exhaustion, not excitement — Bitwise CIO
On Friday, February 6th, Bitwise Chief Investment Officer Matt Hougan answered questions about the current structure and outlook for the Bitcoin price. The senior executive wrote about why the market has fallen and what further declines will help the BTC price hit bottom.
Hougan began by pointing out that there is never a single reason why cryptocurrency markets have declined, as there are often multiple factors at play. In this revision, Bitwise CIO listed about half a dozen contributing factors, including a four-year cycle of front-running, losses from “interested investors” in AI and metals, and the infamous October 10th liquidation event.
It is important to note that the market and Bitcoin price action have not been identical since the significant leverage explosion on October 10, 2025. This historic cleanup comes after US President Donald Trump announced a surprise 100% tariff on all Chinese goods.
Other factors highlighted in the Bitwise report include concerns about Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh, fears of quantum computing, and macro risk-off sentiment. In particular, it can be said that Bitcoin and cryptocurrency markets are not the only victims of this change in sentiment, as mineral and stock markets also saw significant declines.
Hougan noted the good news is that selling signs appear to be showing signs of exhaustion.
Bitwise CIO wrote:
On-chain data shows that long-term holders have stopped selling aggressively, with some even nibbling away at the edges. Open interest on Bitcoin derivatives exchanges has fallen to its last level in 2024.
Hougan went on to say that given history, the price of Bitcoin could fall further under its current structure. However, the investment expert also believes that the premier cryptocurrency is a more mature asset and is unlikely to see a 77% correction like in the past.
While it was unclear exactly when the Bitcoin price would hit bottom, the Bitwise CIO revealed that time is the only catalyst that could turn things around. “Cryptocurrency markets tend to end in exhaustion rather than excitement,” Hougan concluded.
Bitcoin price at a glance
As of this writing, the BTC price is around $67,834, up more than 4% in the last 24 hours.
The price of BTC on the daily timeframe | Source: BTCUSDT chart on TradingView
Featured image from iStock, chart from TradingView
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