Key bitcoin indicator with perfect record of marking bottoms is yet to fire. (Jakub Żerdzicki/Unsplash/Modified by CoinDesk)
What to know:
A long-term bitcoin indicator based on the 50- and 100-week moving averages has accurately coincided with every major market bottom since 2015.
That signal has not occurred as of April 17.
The indicator
It involves two lines on the price chart. That’s it, no complex formula, analysis of blockchain data needed.
These two lines represent bitcoin’s average price over the past 50 and 100 weeks. They act as simple moving averages, showing near-term and long-term trends in bitcoin’s price.
BTC’s price chart with 50- and 100-week averages. (TradingView)
Most of the time, the 50-week average is above the 100-week line. That’s the natural state for markets that trend upward over time, as is the case with bitcoin.
But occasionally, during periods of peak fear, when selling is relentless, and sentiment has collapsed, the 50-week average falls below the 100-week average. This crossover is known as a bear market signal.
It has occurred three times in bitcoin’s history. Each time, it has coincided with the end of a bear market, marking major price bottoms that have not been revisited since.
In other words, it’s been a contrary indicator, ironically marking bottoms rather than deeper downturns.
Three times, three bottoms
Look at the vertical lines on the chart going back to 2015. These mark the three bearish crossovers – April 2015, February 2019, and September 2022. Each one occurred near the bottoming phase, not precisely at the lowest point, but within the same range.
In 2015, BTC was written off as a failed experiment. Then the crossover happened. BTC subsequently rallied from $200 to nearly $20,000 by the end of 2017. A similar pattern played out after the early 2019 crossover.
The 2022 crypto winter, characterized by several bankruptcies and scams, shattered investor confidence. The downtrend, however, ran out of steam after the crossover happened in September. BTC bottomed out in the final months and later chalked out a rally to $126,000 by October 20205.
Each of these bull runs delivered returns far exceeding those of equities and other major asset classes.
What is it saying now?
As of April 17, the crossover has not happened.
Bitcoin has declined sharply from its October record high of over $126,000 to around $75,000, briefly reaching $60,000 in early February. As a result, the two averages are moving closer together, but the 50-week average still holds above the 100-week average.
The takeaway: If history is any guide, the broader bear market may still be intact and could worsen before finding a bottom. It also means that the recent bounce toward $75,000 is likely a temporary recovery rather than the start of a full-fledged bull market.
That said, historical patterns are just that – patterns – and they do not guarantee future outcomes. If U.S. equities, already at record highs, continue to advance, institutional demand for Bitcoin ETFs could strengthen, potentially supporting a price rally.
Bitfinex plans to use the returned coins to redeem all Recovery Right Tokens and devote at least 80 percent of remaining net proceeds to repurchasing and burning its UNUS SED LEO token.
What to know:
The U.S. government moved about $606,000 in bitcoin tied to the 2016 Bitfinex hack to Coinbase Prime, a transfer that may not necessarily signal imminent selling.
Federal proceedings require that the seized Bitfinex-related bitcoin be returned in kind to the exchange, rather than sold and sent to the U.S. Treasury.
