Bitcoin’s 4-Year Cycle: Dead or Just Napping? 🌙💀

Since its humble beginnings in 2009, Bitcoin has danced to the rhythm of a four-year cycle, a waltz of halvings and blow-off tops that left investors both exhilarated and bewildered. 🕺💸 But alas, the music seems to have stopped, and the dancers are left staring at their feet.

The 2024 halving came and went, yet 2025 has refused to deliver the expected fireworks. No blow-off top, no altcoin season, just the quiet rustling of leaves in the crypto forest. 🍃 Where, oh where, has the cycle gone?

Without its dramatic finale, the crypto market has stalled, like a play without a third act. 🏗️⏳

The history of Bitcoin bull market cycles has been a history of exponential decay. Agree with it or not, you will have to deal with it. Should the current decline carry to $50k, the next bull market cycle should carry to $200k to $250K. 📉📈

– Peter Brandt (@PeterLBrandt) December 1, 2025

The Four-Year Cycle: A Relic of the Past? 🕰️🗑️

With Bitcoin prices down 30% from their October highs, it seems the four-year cycle has outlived its usefulness, like a pocket watch in the age of smartphones. ⌚📱 Is this a sensible evolution, or merely the market’s way of keeping us on our toes?

As Bitcoin matures, its cycles may align more with economic rhythms than halving events. Institutional interest is rising, and with it, the possibility that Bitcoin’s dance will be choreographed by broader economic forces. 💼🕊️

One correlation that has caught investors’ eyes is Bitcoin’s relationship with global liquidity. But even this trend has begun to fray at the edges, like a well-worn sweater. 🧶💧

Global Liquidity and Bitcoin Correlation

Should this trend solidify, Bitcoin could soar once more, perhaps even awakening the slumbering altcoin season. 🦅🌱

Michael Saylor, ever the provocateur, has declared the four-year cycle “dead.” 🦴 His recent Bitcoin binge suggests he’s betting on a massive repricing. But is he a visionary or a victim of his own enthusiasm? 🤔

Liquidity, however, is not the only player in this drama.

Economic Activity: The Unpredictable Protagonist 🎭📊

Some investors are now turning to the US Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for clues. The PMI, a measure of manufacturing health, is like a thermometer for the economy. 🌡️ But can it predict Bitcoin’s feverish movements?

In theory, a strong PMI signals economic growth, which could boost Bitcoin through various channels. But in practice, Bitcoin’s relationship with PMI is as stable as a house of cards in a windstorm. 🏠🌪️

With the PMI cooling off again, Bitcoin’s macro fair value has slipped back to around $140k. 2025 has been a choppy year for BTC. Hot money has been stampeding toward faster horses: AI, gold, small caps… pretty much anything except Bitcoin. 🐎🚀

– mNAV.com (@BitcoinPowerLaw) December 1, 2025

Bitcoin often responds more to monetary policy signals than to real economy indicators. When PMI does seem to matter, it’s usually through the broader risk sentiment channel. If you’re relying on PMI as a trading signal, you might as well be reading tea leaves. 🍵🔮

Sentiment: The Wild Card in the Deck 🎴🤪

Cryptocurrencies, particularly Bitcoin, lack traditional valuation anchors. Without earnings or dividends, price discovery is driven by what people believe the asset should be worth. This leaves ample room for sentiment to take the reins. 🧠💭

Social media activity, search trends, and news sentiment have measurable predictive power for short-term price movements. The crypto market’s structural features-high retail participation, 24/7 trading, and rapid information dissemination-amplify these effects. 📱🚀

Fear and greed cycles can become self-reinforcing, like a hall of mirrors reflecting endless versions of ourselves. 🪞😱

But what looks like “pure sentiment” often includes assessments of fundamental factors. Is excitement about institutional adoption sentiment or recognition of changing supply/demand dynamics? When macro concerns drive people toward Bitcoin, sentiment is the vehicle for macro factors. 🚗💨

During stable periods, the drivers might be: 40% macro conditions, 30% supply/demand fundamentals, and 30% pure sentiment. But during extreme phases, sentiment can dominate at 60-70%+, overriding both fundamentals and macro logic. These are the moments when prices detach from rationality, and investors who recognize this are best positioned to profit. 📈💰

Bringing It Together: A Mosaic of Factors 🧩🌍

There’s no single signal or trend that can predict Bitcoin’s cycles. An expanding economy should be bullish, a contracting one shouldn’t-unless liquidity floods the system. Individual indicators like global liquidity, credit conditions, and market sentiment all play a role. 🎭🎲

Beyond Bitcoin, individual crypto projects will rise or fall based on their real-world utility. Meme coins, driven by the fleeting magic of memes, will continue their rollercoaster ride. 🎢🤡

But even as Bitcoin moves beyond its four-year cycle, the fundamental concept remains: Bitcoin’s value lies in its ability to store digital wealth without intermediaries. And when Bitcoin takes off again, the altcoins will follow, like ducks in a row. 🦆🚀

“The reason bitcoin’s price is up ~28,000% over the last ten years is that more and more people want the ability to store digital wealth in a way that isn’t intermediated by a company or a government.”

– Bitwise CIO Matt Houghton

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2025-12-02 02:43