Bitcoin’s 17% crash explained: $88M whale short, tariff shock & more…
The crash was largely a matter of timing – each politically and psychologically.
Supply: Cryptoquant
Retail wallets piled into BTC proper at $122K, once more.
That is the fourth time in months they’ve purchased massive at native tops, solely to get dumped on by whales. In the meantime, long-term holders (LTHs) didn’t budge; trade reserves continued dropping, an indication of regular accumulation.
Political shocks create short-term panic, however it appears it’s all the time the identical gamers who react.
Will October shock us all?
To this point, we’ve seen panic-selling, political shocks, and traditional short-term errors, however zooming out reveals something interesting.
Supply: X
October value declines of greater than 5% have occurred solely 4 occasions prior to now decade, particularly in 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2021. Every time, Bitcoin rebounded inside per week, typically with double-digit beneficial properties. Economist Timothy Peterson highlighted 7-day recoveries of as much as 21% following these uncommon October dips.
Now, in October 2025, we could also be witnessing the same setup. If the sample holds, this pullback may very well be a reset earlier than the following leg upward.
