Bitcoin drops below the $84k and social media sentiment has really become pessimistic. Santiment now sees the most negative sentiment of the year so far, which means that many traders who entered late are probably capitulating.

The shift from caution to pure fear is actually quite interesting. Normally, you see this when the crowd leans too far in one direction, and there are no more marginal sellers left to sell. That can ultimately limit the decline, especially if large players with a longer investment horizon see these forced sales as an opportunity.

Funding rates on major exchanges have been negative for 46 days, indicating that the market is quite bearish. Bitcoin briefly tried to break above the $76k but fell back to around $74k. Fluctuating trading fits into the bigger picture — stocks, gold, and silver have all seen pullbacks after strong gains.

Santiment sees this fear spike more as a sign of capitulation than the start of something new. Retail traders usually sell when the pain is at its worst. So, actually, if Bitcoin stabilizes around levels like $90k and the fear subsides a bit, the same traders who are now spreading panic could be buying again tomorrow. That’s the cycle.