The Crypto Fear and Greed Index for Bitcoin dropped sharply from a greed reading of 71 to an extreme fear level of 24 in just days, marking its lowest point in twelve months as of mid-October 2025. This abrupt shift reflects heightened market nervousness, with Bitcoin's price declining to around $108,226 and Google search interest for the cryptocurrency hitting multi-month lows.
Bitwise analysts, including André Dragosch, Max Shannon, and Ayush Tripathi, argue that the current fear presents a contrarian accumulation opportunity. They attribute the correction to external factors like U.S.-China trade tensions, which spurred risk aversion, but note that selling pressure has peaked. A key indicator is the record $11 billion drop in perpetual futures open interest due to liquidations, which they believe has significantly exhausted selling pressure and created a buying window.
On-chain data shows mixed signals: small and medium holders (with 1 to 1,000 BTC) are increasing accumulation, offsetting slower activity from large investors. However, miners transferred 51,000 BTC (approximately $5.7 billion) to exchanges, suggesting potential selling, and over 265,000 BTC were liquidated in the past month—the largest outflow since January 2025. Despite this, price stability near $110,000 indicates institutional demand, possibly from ETFs, is absorbing supply.
Bitwise compares this scenario to historical patterns, such as the yen carry trade unwinding in August 2024, and suggests the market is transitioning from panic to re-accumulation, often preceding seasonal strength in the fourth quarter.
BNB
ETH
SOL
USDC
FIL
XTZ
NEAR