Bitwise CEO Hunter Horsley told CNBC on Friday that Bitcoin's slide below $70,000 places it in a bear market and is offering institutions a fresh opportunity to buy at levels they thought they had missed. He noted Bitcoin was recently down 22.60% over 30 days and trading near $69,635, while Bitwise saw over $100 million in institutional inflows on Monday as the asset traded around $77,000. Horsley added that Bitcoin is currently moving in tandem with other liquid macro assets as investors sell broadly across markets.

Bullish CEO Tom Farley said in a CNBC interview that the crypto sector is set for large‑scale consolidation, with bigger players acquiring smaller projects. He argued the recent market slide has reset expectations, noting Bitcoin is nearly 45% below its October all‑time high and around $69,405 at publication. Farley added many firms will need to merge and scale.

Santiment said on Saturday that retail traders are scanning for signs of 'capitulation' to time entries, implying a bottom may already have formed. Google Trends shows 'crypto capitulation' searches rising from 11 in the week ending Feb. 1 to 58 in the week ending Feb. 8. Bitcoin fell 24.27% over 30 days and was $68,970 at publication.

BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) recorded $231.6 million of inflows on Friday, following two prior sessions of heavy redemptions and a sharp price decline. The move came in a week where U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs saw three days of $1.25 billion in combined outflows before a $330.7 million inflow rebound, while Bitcoin's price fell 24.30% over 30 days.

Google Trends data shows global searches for "Bitcoin" jumping to a score of 100 in the week starting Feb. 1, marking a 12‑month high as BTC briefly slid to around $60,000 before rebounding. Bitcoin fell from about $81,500 to roughly $60,000 within five days and later recovered to $70,740, prompting Bitwise's André Dragosch to say that retail traders are returning, even as sentiment gauges signal extreme fear.

ProCap Financial CIO Jeff Park said on Thursday that Bitcoin's next major catalyst may be its price rising even as the US Federal Reserve hikes rates. He called that scenario the asset's "endgame" during an interview with Anthony Pompliano. Bitcoin was at $70,503 at publication, down 22.53% in the past 30 days, according to CoinMarketCap.

On Thursday, shares of Bitcoin mining firms IREN and CleanSpark declined sharply after both companies reported quarterly earnings that fell short of analyst expectations. CleanSpark closed down 19.13% and IREN fell 11.46% during the session, while broader crypto markets weakened with Bitcoin dropping 12% in 24 hours and total market capitalization sliding nearly 9%.

ETF analyst James Seyffart said in an X post on Wednesday that US spot Bitcoin ETF holders are staying the course through a four‑month slide, even as paper losses approach around 42% with Bitcoin below $73,000. Preliminary Farside Investors data indicate net inflows eased from roughly $62.11 billion before the October downturn to about $55 billion.

Tether said in a Friday BDO-prepared report that 2025 net profit exceeded $10 billion, about 23% below the $13 billion recorded in 2024. The filing showed direct U.S. Treasury holdings above $122 billion and $50 billion of new USDt issued over 12 months, as demand moved outside traditional banking.