It has been a rough start to the year for crypto investors, with another major leg down in the Bitcoin price. It had been consolidating between $85k and $95k for a few months, but then fell through trend line support and dipped briefly toward $60k, before bouncing back above key support at $69k.

The chart became very oversold during the crash, with the RSI dropping to 16. the lowest level since 2019. The price has fallen through all key EMAs and support levels. The quick bounce back above $69k is encouraging, but it needs to hold above this level for sentiment to shift bullish again.

The recent decline mirrored a big drop in tech stocks, which was at least partially driven by the DOJ releasing a large cache of Epstein files that implicate several prominent politicians, business leaders and celebrities.

There are even some connections between Epstein and early Bitcoin development, mentions of the cryptocurrency in his emails and an investment in Coinbase in 2014. Epstein donated roughly $525,000 (part of ~$850,000 total to MIT) to the MIT Media Lab, which helped launch and support the DCI. In 2015, some of these "gift funds" indirectly paid salaries for Bitcoin Core developers.

Conspiracy theorists went as far as suggesting that Epstein created Bitcoin, which is ridiculous, but still created some FUD in the market.

The bottom line is that the connection between Jeffrey Epstein and Bitcoin/crypto is real but limited and mostly peripheral, centered on investments, networking, and indirect funding in the mid-2010s (well after Bitcoin's 2008–2009 launch). There is no evidence that Epstein created Bitcoin or was Satoshi Nakamoto. He also had no confirmed personal Bitcoin wallets, large holdings, or mining operations.

The crash was accelerated by liquidations and paper manipulation. Many believe it was an intentional move to allow institutions and insiders to scare holders out of their positions and scoop up large amounts of Bitcoin at deeply discounted prices (more than 50% off recent highs).

Whatever the truth may be, it has certainly presented an opportunity for investors to buy a substantial dip in crypto prices. Many still think we could see Bitcoin drop to $50,000 or as low at $38,000 before bottoming. I think, absent any major Black Swans, we have likely seen the bottom. But there do appear to be quite a few Black Swans these days, so anything is possible.

Takeaway: Bitcoin lost key support at $69,000 and crashed toward $60,000. The quick bounce back above $69k is bullish if it holds. I think those with cash on the sidelines can use this dip as a buying opportunity, but should consider only partial deployment of funds at this point.