
Bitcoin faces a crash storm before the 2026 Spring Festival, dropping to around $60,000 and raising concerns among retail investors. BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF surpassing $10 billion in trading volume indicates deleveraging by non-long-term investors. Despite a 16,590% return over 10 years, Motley Fool’s analysis team has not included BTC in their buy list. Robert Kiyosaki favors Bitcoin over gold due to its 21 million cap.
Bitcoin plummeted from $73,000 to around $62,000, simultaneously causing BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF daily trading volume to surge past $10 billion. Behind this spike in trading volume, it’s not a full withdrawal of long-term funds but forced deleveraging by hedge funds and institutions amid increased volatility and rising financing costs, cooling off positions originally aimed at short-term basis gains.
Data shows that the total Bitcoin held by Bitcoin ETFs only decreased slightly, indicating long-term investors mostly continued holding. The real clearing involved mainly leveraged and arbitrage-driven “quick money.” This reallocation driven by institutions often amplifies short-term volatility but also shifts risk away from high-leverage positions, creating room for re-pricing.
This deleveraging process recurs in crypto market cycles. When prices rise, speculators use high leverage to amplify gains; when prices reverse, these leveraged positions are forced to close, accelerating declines. The current adjustment may be part of this cleansing process. Once excessive leverage is cleared, the market will be healthier and better positioned for a rebound.
However, with common holders’ risk, when the same group of institutions holds Bitcoin, related ETFs, and some growth stocks simultaneously, a chain reaction of “one-click risk shutdown” selling pressure is not surprising. For ordinary investors, such an environment is no longer suitable for concentrated bets on high-volatility assets. Instead, diversification is needed to enhance portfolio resilience and maintain opportunities to participate in rebounds in stocks and credit markets.
Aggressive Investors: See the 45% dip as a buying opportunity, with 10-year gains of 16,590% validating long-term value.
Professional Analysts: Motley Fool has not included Bitcoin in their buy list, believing there are better options.
Conservative Allocators: Franklin recommends pairing bonds with other assets, avoiding sole reliance on high-volatility assets.
While short-term Bitcoin price forecasts are challenging, its performance over the past decade remains astonishing. Despite multiple sell-offs and market winters, long-term holders have reaped substantial returns. Data shows Bitcoin achieved approximately 16,590% return over ten years. If an investor had put $1,000 into Bitcoin ten years ago and held, it would now be worth about $167,000.
This long-term return demonstrates that, despite intense short-term volatility, holding long-term can be highly rewarding. However, past performance does not guarantee future results. Ten years ago, Bitcoin was a niche experiment with a market cap of only a few billion dollars, leaving enormous growth potential. Today, Bitcoin’s market cap exceeds $1 trillion, and replicating similar multiples would require absorbing tens of trillions in new capital—an immense challenge.
Given this impressive historical performance, investors might wonder if now is a good entry point. However, according to the latest assessment from Motley Fool’s Stock Advisor team, they remain cautious about buying Bitcoin at this stage. Bitcoin is not on their current top 10 buy list.
This indicates that, despite stellar past performance, professional analysts see more promising opportunities elsewhere, considering current market conditions and risks. When allocating assets, investors should carefully evaluate volatility risks and personal investment goals. Their caution likely stems from: Bitcoin’s current valuation being less attractive, macro risks unfavorable to risk assets, and ongoing regulatory uncertainties.
Recent price swings in gold and Bitcoin have drawn investor attention. Robert Kiyosaki, author of “Rich Dad Poor Dad,” stated on X (formerly Twitter) that if he could choose only one investment—gold or Bitcoin—he would pick Bitcoin because of its supply limit. Although Kiyosaki advocates diversified asset allocation, including gold, silver, and Bitcoin, he gave a clear answer when faced with a “choose one” dilemma.
Drawing from his experience as a gold miner, Kiyosaki explains that gold is theoretically “infinite”: as prices rise, miners invest more in extraction, increasing supply. In contrast, Bitcoin’s design is fundamentally different. It has a fixed cap of 21 million coins, and nearly that amount has already been mined globally. Once the cap is reached, no new Bitcoin will enter the market.
Kiyosaki believes this scarcity-driven feature will likely push Bitcoin’s price higher over time. He is glad to have entered early. While he leans toward Bitcoin for investment, he still actively engages in physical industries like gold mining and oil drilling, reflecting his multi-asset approach and consistent diversification philosophy.
In a phase where deleveraging is ongoing and market sentiment remains sensitive, investors need not chase high-volatility assets like Bitcoin. Instead, they can adopt a prudent, multi-pronged approach to position for medium- to long-term trends and steady returns. First, focus on core bonds and multi-income funds, securing stable dividends and lower volatility assets to provide downside protection. When market expectations for rate cuts and economic growth fluctuate, sovereign bonds, investment-grade corporate bonds, and some emerging market debt tend to benefit from falling interest rates and risk appetite recovery.
Second, moderately include equity funds and regional growth funds to participate in profit rebounds and risk re-pricing in US and emerging markets, but keep allocations modest. Use dollar-cost averaging to diversify entry points, reducing short-term emotional and return impacts.
Third, emphasize multi-asset and global diversification rather than concentration in a single theme or region. When crypto assets or certain growth stocks face concentrated selling due to common holder risks, a globally diversified portfolio of stocks, bonds, and multi-income tools can buffer shocks, achieving a “resilient and uptrend” effect.
Overall, now is not the time for emotional leverage increases. Instead, a balanced approach with stocks, bonds, diversified assets, and regular investments can smooth volatility and position for medium- to long-term opportunities after institutional selling pressure subsides and markets reprice.
Regarding whether “now is the time to buy Bitcoin,” the answer depends on your investment goals, risk tolerance, and time horizon. If you are a long-term investor (5–10 years) believing in Bitcoin’s scarcity and institutional adoption, current conditions might be favorable. For short-term traders, waiting for deleveraging to complete and clear technical signals is advisable. For conservative investors, Bitcoin should be a small part of a diversified portfolio, not the entire allocation.
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