Crypto market 'isn't scared enough' to call a bottom yet: Santiment

Crypto traders haven't hit peak fear levels on social media yet — which means we might not have seen the market bottom. Santiment founder Maksim Balashevich just dropped the cold truth: Bitcoin could still slide to around $75K.

“It looks very tempting to come even closer to it,” Balashevich said in a YouTube video on Friday. A move to $75K would be a ~14.77% drop from Bitcoin's current price of $88,350 (per CoinMarketCap).

Why the hesitation? Balashevich is seeing way too much optimism online about a near-term reversal. “The crowd isn't scared enough for a bottom,” Santiment said in a report the same day.

“In one particular crowd-dominated or retail-dominated channel, they’re mostly discussing Bank of Japan cut rates, and bears got caught, and now we’ll continue up from here,” he said. “These kinds of statements are not what I want to see.”

Japan’s central bank just pushed interest rates to a 30-year high of 0.75% — a move historically linked to ~20% Bitcoin corrections. But Balashevich thinks a drop to $75K could actually set up a “very good setup” for traders.

Meanwhile, Fidelity’s director of global macro research, Jurrien Timmer, said Bitcoin might take a “year off” in 2026, potentially falling to ~$65K. But Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan is betting on 2026 being an “up year” for BTC. Mixed signals, much?

While Balashevich isn’t convinced we’ve hit bottom, other metrics tell a different story. The Crypto Fear & Greed Index has been stuck in “Extreme Fear” territory since Dec. 14, posting a score of 20 on Sunday.

More signs of risk-off vibes: The Altcoin Season Index hit a “Bitcoin Season” reading of 17/100 on Saturday, showing altcoins are underperforming BTC hard.