Bitwise CIO: The "full-blown crypto winter" masked by institutional funding is nearing its end, not its beginning.

PANews reported on February 3rd, citing The Block, that Bitwise Chief Investment Officer Matt Hougan stated that the crypto market has been in a "full-blown crypto winter" since early 2025, but the current market may be closer to the end of a downtrend than its beginning. Hougan pointed out that Bitcoin has fallen approximately 39% from its all-time high in October 2025, Ethereum has fallen approximately 53%, and many other digital assets have fallen even more. He believes that the current phase is comparable to the crypto winters of 2018 and 2022, characterized by excessive leverage and widespread profit-taking by early holders, with negative sentiment outweighing incremental positive factors. Although Bitcoin peaked in October 2025, the actual market weakness began in January 2025, only masked by strong inflows into ETFs and digital asset treasuries. Without this support, Bitcoin's decline could approach 60%.

Despite the market weakness, Hougan believes the crypto ecosystem continues to make structural progress in areas such as regulation, institutional adoption, stablecoins, and asset tokenization. Historically, crypto winters have often ended in despair and depression rather than a reversal in euphoria, and the current sentiment resembles the characteristics of past market bottoms. While the timing is uncertain, considering this correction has lasted for over a year, coupled with potential positive catalysts such as strong economic growth, regulatory legislation, and signs of sovereign adoption of Bitcoin, he believes the market is closer to recovery than further decline.