Bitwise CIO: Bitcoin Is Currently in the Capitulation Phase, Price Drop Driven by Long Liquidations Rather Than Market Manipulation Conspiracy

**Feb 27: Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan on Bitcoin’s Drop, Conspiracies & Outlook** Bitwise Chief Investment Officer Matt Hougan said Tuesday, Feb 27: “Conspiracy theories are swirling. It started with Binance, then Wintermute, then an unknown offshore macro hedge fund, then ‘paper Bitcoin’—today it’s Jane Street’s turn; next week it’ll probably shift to someone else.” The real driver of Bitcoin’s decline? A group of previously long Bitcoin holders offloaded their exposure: via spot markets, unwinding leveraged positions, and selling call options to cut risk. Their motivations? The “four-year cycle,” quantum computing fears, a push into AI startups, and other factors. Most of that selling is already done, and we’re forming a bottom. New all-time highs are still in the cards. This is a typical crypto winter—one that’ll eventually give way to a typical crypto spring. People always want someone to blame; I get that. But reality’s often more mundane than conspiracies.