Bitwise CIO: Bitcoin is in the bottoming phase; the decline stems from bullish selling rather than market manipulation conspiracy theories.

ChainCatcher reports that Matt Hougan, Chief Investment Officer of Bitwise, wrote, “Conspiracy theories abound. First it was Binance, then Wintertermute, then some unknown offshore macro hedge fund, then paper Bitcoin, and today it’s Jane Street’s turn, and next week it might be someone else. The real reason for Bitcoin’s decline is that a group of people who were previously long on Bitcoin sold their Bitcoin exposure. They sold through the spot market, by unleveraging their positions, and by selling call options to reduce their exposure. They sold because of the four-year cycle, concerns about quantum computing, the desire to invest in AI startups, and many other reasons. Their selling is mostly complete, and we are in the process of bottoming out. New all-time highs will still be reached in the future. This is a typical Crypto Winter, and it will eventually usher in a typical crypto spring. People always want to find someone to blame—I understand that sentiment—but reality is often more mundane than conspiracy theories.”