A new crypto winter is here and even the biggest bulls are worried

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Bitcoin just suffered its largest weekly decline in more than three years. But the worst part for some of crypto’s permabulls is that they aren’t sure what exactly caused the crash.

The selloff left many of the market’s luminaries—those so well-known that they go simply as “Pomp" and “Novo" and “Mooch"—searching for answers. “Bitcoin is crashing and investors are freaking out," Anthony Pompliano, a crypto evangelist and investor, wrote Friday. Bitcoin fell 16% to $70,008 this past week, down a sharp 45% from its all-time high of $126,273 in October.

Ether dropped 24% to $2,052, off 59% from its own high of last year. Both tokens staged furious rallies Friday, but the week remained a historically bad one for crypto. And few seem to know what went wrong.

Market theories for the selloff ranged from investors’ pivot toward the prediction markets and other risky bets, to widespread profit-taking after a blistering bull run. “There was no smoking gun," said Michael Novogratz, who runs Galaxy Digital, a crypto merchant-banking and trading firm. For much of last year, crypto was in ascendance.

President Trump’s return to the White House ushered in a new era for digital assets, which continued to gain acceptance among individual investors and legitimacy on Wall Street. As bitcoin and other popular tokens touched record highs, it seemed as though the market’s best days always lay ahead. “I really didn’t think that we’d see a six at the beginning of the bitcoin price ever again," said Cory Klippsten, chief executive officer of the bitcoin financial services firm Swan Bitcoin.