Long-time Bitcoin investors have seen this story before. After every crash comes a record-setting recovery.
Yes, the price of Bitcoin (BTC 0.68%) is crashing. It’s now down to $70,000. But check again in a few minutes, because it might have dropped even lower.
So it’s completely understandable why some investors are panicking right now. The one asset that was supposed to turn them into paper millionaires is collapsing in value, and they are racing for the exits. But that would be a mistake. As long as Bitcoin is trading for less than $100,000, it’s a screaming buy.
The Bitcoin 4-year cycle
Long-time crypto investors understand that Bitcoin has always been a cyclical asset following a four-year cycle of boom and bust. The numbers don’t lie. Every four years, just like clockwork, the price of Bitcoin has collapsed. Bitcoin sank by 58% in 2014, 74% in 2018, and 64% in 2022.
If history is any guide, then, we’re just getting started in 2026. Bitcoin may be down 20% for 2026, but it will likely fall even further. During the crypto winter of 2022, Bitcoin sank below $16,000 before finally recovering. And recover it did. From a cyclical low of $16,000 in 2022, Bitcoin rode a wave of investor enthusiasm to hit a price of $126,000 in 2025. That’s a sparkling eightfold return on your money.
Image source: Getty Images.
That’s why investors should think about loading up on Bitcoin during the current collapse. This might sound contrarian, but it’s not. Plenty of high-profile investors are sticking by their future price targets for Bitcoin. Take Cathie Wood of Ark Invest, for example. She’s sticking by her $1 million price target for Bitcoin.
Is Bitcoin still a scarce asset?
Bitcoin has a hard cap of just 21 million coins in circulation, and that was supposed to guarantee its scarcity in perpetuity. It’s why Bitcoin has often been referred to as digital gold. Just like physical gold, the supply of Bitcoin is capped at a certain level. As demand for Bitcoin grows over time, its price is supposed to skyrocket. It’s the law of supply and demand at work.
Today’s Change
(-0.68%) $-471.47
Current Price
$68588.00
Key Data Points
Market Cap
$1.4T
Day’s Range
$68428.00 – $71033.00
52wk Range
$60255.56 – $126079.89
Volume
49B
But then Wall Street got into the act. Using financial derivatives such as futures, swaps, and options, it’s now possible to sell the same Bitcoin multiple times. Using exchange-traded funds (ETFs), it’s now possible to buy paper Bitcoin rather than real Bitcoin.
Suddenly, the price of Bitcoin is no longer being set in the spot crypto market. It’s now being set in the derivatives market where it’s possible to take on incredible leverage. In a worst-case scenario, Wall Street’s hyperfinancialization of Bitcoin may have destroyed its scarcity.
That’s what has even die-hard crypto investors concerned right now. It’s leading a number of top investors to question the value of Bitcoin. Suddenly, it’s fashionable to talk about how much lower Bitcoin might fall and whether Bitcoin is really a safe asset.
I can understand the concern, but I think it’s unjustified. This type of deep soul searching occurs during every Bitcoin crash. The time to load up on Bitcoin is now while it’s still possible to buy the world’s most popular cryptocurrency at an incredible 44% discount from its all-time high.