Bitcoin’s price continues to drop. It has been over a week since the start of the sharp decline, and nothing good looms on the horizon. Bitcoin’s price drops have been dragging the crypto market with it, resulting in fear sells which make things even worse.
According to research, the current market sentiment is “extreme fear”. That’s the worst metric measure that was last seen in April 2020. After nearly a year of highs, especially in the past 6 months, Bitcoin is on the decline, and the market seems bearish.
A Week Filled with Uncertainty and Fear
The past week has been filled with fear and uncertainty. Doubt is on the mind of all crypto investors, including regular Joes that have put their life savings into digital coins. It’s not just Bitcoin’s price that’s been going down. The largest cryptocurrency by market volume has been dragging all other coins into a deep black hole some will never come out from.
In the past, extremely fearful markets have presented great buying opportunities during bull cycles. While that may be an optimistic look at things, numerous market indicators have turned negative. These include the funding rates for Bitcoin and the short-term price volatility. The Fear and Greed index shows the BTC market sentiment at a 12-month low, and that’s the biggest problem right now.
The sharp price decline began around 10 days ago when Tesla CEO and billionaire Elon Musk announced that the company is dropping Bitcoin support. He sent the market flying a few months ago when he announced that Tesla bought a substantial size of Bitcoins. The company also added Bitcoin payments, but it only lasted for a short time.
Citing environmental impact, Musk has criticized Bitcoin lately. As a result, the market went into a steep decline and 12-month lows for many digital coins. The market has experienced a massive $280 billion wipe, with Bitcoin dropping below $40,000 for the first time in 14 weeks. It’s clear that panic selling is a big problem in a time when Bitcoin adoption is rising.
Price Down, but Adoption on the Rise
What’s surprising are the indicators that show Bitcoin adoption is on the rise despite the declining price. Corporate adoption is still growing. MoneyGram, for example, has just announced that it will allow customers to buy and sell Bitcoin at over 12,000 locations across the USA. Thanks to a new partnership with ATM and cryptocurrency operator Coinme, MoneyGram is entering a brand-new era.
All existing and new Coinme users can now buy crypto with cash and withdraw it at MoneyGram locations. This is only the beginning. Both companies have announced plans to expand the offering to locations outside of the US later this year.
This may be the catalyst Bitcoin and the crypto market need to recover. If adoption continues to rise like it has so far, maybe the long-term prospects are not too bleak. Right now, the situation doesn’t look great, but that may all change soon.