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Bitcoin’s Current Pull Back Has Some Experts Worried

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Published Mar 22, 2026
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A large gold Bitcoin token is shown cracked into several pieces against a dark background, reflecting a recent Bitcoin pull back, with a BriefsFinance logo in the bottom right corner.
Summary:
  • Bitcoin's chart is tracing the same sluggish bounce pattern that showed up right before prices collapsed from $90,000 to $60,000 earlier this year
  • The coin is down 18% on the year and roughly 41% off its record near $126,000 - the worst opening stretch for any year in Bitcoin's history
  • But each time Bitcoin has finished a calendar year in the red since 2013, what followed was a big recovery - and April tends to be one of its strongest months

The coin is hovering around $67,000 after going red five months in a row - a losing run it hasn't matched since the brutal 2018-2019 stretch. 

But the part that has traders on edge isn't the losing streak. It's that the bounce might be a little too familiar. 

The Pattern Some Investors Are Seeing

Since bottoming out in early February, Bitcoin has moved a bit higher.

That matters because the exact same setup played out between late November and mid-January. 

Back then, the coin drifted higher in a tight range after falling from $100,000.

Then, prices went straight down to roughly $60,000 in a matter of days.

The current bounce has the same fingerprints - slow and choppy, with no real energy from buyers stepping in on dips.

Technical analysts call this a counter-trend recovery - a brief pause that tricks investors into thinking the worst is over. 

If the lower edge of the current range gives way around $65,800, that illusion could break fast.

Why Some Crypto Investors Are Hopeful

Spot Bitcoin ETFs - funds that hold the actual coin - lost nearly $4 billion in investor money during the first five weeks of 2026.

But the 2014 downturn gave way to a 35% rally. 

The 2018 collapse saw  95% come back later. 

And after the 2022 meltdown, prices more than doubled - climbing 156%.

Put those together and you get an average rebound of roughly 95% every time investors were ready to write it off.

Now, that’s not to say it’s guaranteed to come back - but it has some investors hopeful the trend will continue.

Why April Could be Important

Looking back at the last 13 years, April has closed higher more often than not - eight times out of 13. The average move during the month sits around 13%.

That doesn't guarantee anything - and there's no major catalyst on the horizon, with the next halving still two years out in 2028. 

If the chart pattern breaks to the downside, the selling could get worse before it gets better.

If it breaks higher, the bears lose their grip - and the worst start to a year on record turns into a buying opportunity that looks obvious in hindsight.

One of them will be wrong inside the next two weeks.

Disclosure

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