"Crypto Market Turmoil: Bitcoin's Retreat, Memecoin Frenzy, and Bullish Signs Emerge"

Despite recent market volatility, a glass-half-full perspective reveals several positive indicators and developments in the crypto and broader financial landscape.

Bitcoin, the world's largest cryptocurrency, has retreated from its all-time high reached last month, with US bitcoin ETFs experiencing record outflows. However, this downturn is not isolated to the crypto market, as stocks have also seen red. Nevertheless, a rebound could be on the horizon, as the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite indexes remained relatively stable despite Bitcoin's decline.

21Shares crypto research strategist Matt Mena suggests that bull markets peak under specific conditions, such as excessive leverage, retail euphoria, and falling Bitcoin dominance, rather than compressed funding rates. He argues that liquidations reset overleveraged positions, creating healthier uptrends as traders re-enter the market post-shakeout.

The memecoin token frenzy, exemplified by tokens like $TRUMP, aligns with mid-cycle speculation patterns observed in 2020-2021. Blockworks' Katherine Ross notes that recent token launches have contributed to the larger exhaustion in the market. However, Bitwise research head Ryan Rasmussen counters this perspective, highlighting the potential for a market recovery.

Mena also points out that the M2 money supply has been growing since mid-January, and quantitative tightening may soon reach a natural end. Additionally, the Pi Cycle Top Indicator, which tracks Bitcoin's 111-day simple moving average against a 2x multiple of the 350-day SMA, has not yet signaled a market peak.

LMAX Group's Joel Kruger argues that correlations between Bitcoin and traditional risk assets can be misleading, as Bitcoin can generate significant demand as an attractive portfolio diversification asset. He believes there is formidable support for Bitcoin in the $70,000-$75,000 zone, which should serve as an attractive higher low ahead of the next major upside extension and bullish continuation to a fresh record high beyond $110,000.

Last week's Bybit hack is unlikely to have a major impact on institutional confidence in centralized exchanges, according to YouHodler markets chief Ruslan Lienkha. He believes that institutions typically adhere to strict treasury management rules and allocate only the necessary liquidity to CEXs for routine transactions, while large-scale institutional trades are