The seasonal cryptocurrency pattern points to further losses for Bitcoin in December, following the resounding crash of the FTX exchange.
Hot The largest cryptocurrency up 16% in November. Historically and over the past decade, it has continued to weaken in December after declines in the previous month, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
This pattern was evident in 2018, 2019 and 2021, leaving an average decline in December of nearly 11%.
If the scenario repeats itself, cryptocurrencies could lag behind stocks due to rising expectations for a recovery in financial markets with the Fed heading for smaller rate hikes.
Cryptocurrency markets have fallen in the wake of the bankruptcy of Sam Bankman Fried’s FTX trading platform and sister investment house Alameda Research. It stabilized as the month went on, supported in part by signs that the Fed will shift to less aggressive monetary tightening.
The worlds of traditional and digital finance alike are still in shock from the debacle of FTX, which at one point boasted a valuation of $32 billion but whose founder Bankman Fried now claims to have only $100,000 in his bank balance.