Bitcoin million-dollar price tags are back as the United States regional banking sector dices with crisis.
Almost a year to the day that multiple banks, including crypto-focused Signature Bank, collapsed, its buyer is down 60% year-to-date.
Hayes keeps $1-million BTC price bet on the table
In what may end up a peculiar dose of déjà vu, Bitcoiners are witnessing what some say is the early innings of a second U.S. banking crisis.
Coming close to the one-year anniversary of the initial turmoil, New York Community Bancorp (NYCB) has seen the value of its stock plummet 30% in just five days.
Closing at $4.20 on Feb. 6, per data from TradingView, the bank’s performance is raising alarm — and the fact that it was NYCB that acquired the failed crypto bank Signature last year is not lost on Bitcoin circles.
“NYCB bank to its valuation from 1997,” Benjamin Cowen, CEO and founder of crypto newsletter Into The Cryptoverse, noted in a reaction on X (formerly Twitter).
“Investor protection at its finest.”
In March 2023, Bitcoin saw flash volatility as regional banks began disintegrating — a domino effect that eventually led the Federal Reserve to step in with the Bank Term Funding Program (BTFP).
This has run for a year but will not be renewed — something that Arthur Hayes, former CEO of crypto derivatives giant BitMEX, believes will provide the backdrop for a repeat performance.
At the time, BTC price action initially suffered amid the uncertainty before capitalizing on the situation. As Cointelegraph reported, Hayes sees a potential dip to $30,000 this March, followed by a copycat rebound.
NYCB’s losses, combined with ratings agency Moody’s cutting its status to junk, have additionally led him to repeat a $1-million BTC price forecast.
“From junk to bankrupt, that’s the future. And then more money printer go brrrr,” part of an X post reads.
Bitcoin plays it cool
As Cointelegraph continues to report, instability is not only affecting the U.S. this month.
China’s CSI 1000 index has lost $7 trillion since Q4 last year, dropping 8% in a single day on Feb. 5 before rescue rumors saw it whipsaw higher.
Bitcoin, still fresh from the flux created by the launch of U.S. spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs), has yet to demonstrate major price interest in these would-be macroeconcomic triggers.
BTC/USD has now remained in a clearly defined daily range for more than 150 days, data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro confirms.
