Bitcoin BTC$84,120.99 has long made investors pay for its bull markets with brutal crashes, but that trade-off may finally be changing. The crypto asset fell roughly 55% from its October 2025 peak during its most recent bear cycle. That would qualify as a historic collapse in most markets, but for bitcoin, it was relatively tame compared to past collapses. In November 2021, for example, after reaching nearly $69,000, bitcoin plunged below $16,000 a year later as rising interest rates, a string of crypto bankruptcies and the collapse of FTX battered the market. The drop topped 75%. Earlier cycles produced drawdowns of 80% or more.