Who Exactly Is Persistently Funding the Crypto Bear Market?
Despite a significant crypto market downturn in Q1 2026, with Bitcoin falling over 25% and Ethereum down 35%, institutional investment continued to flow in. Key buyers included corporate treasuries like Strategy (MicroStrategy), which aggressively added over $10 billion in Bitcoin, sovereign wealth funds such as Mubadala, and major banks launching new crypto ETFs. Over 26 new single-asset crypto ETFs were filed or launched under new SEC rules, including products from BlackRock and Morgan Stanley.
VC funding showed concentration, with total funding around $5-6.8 billion but deal count dropping 49%. Three major deals—BVNK ($1.8B), Kalshi ($1B), and Polymarket ($600M)—accounted for half the quarter’s funding. Investment shifted toward payment/stablecoin and prediction market sectors, while DeFi and NFT/gaming funding declined sharply.
The market is bifurcated: long-term holders and institutions are accumulating, while tactical hedge funds and miners are selling. The U.S. strategic Bitcoin reserve remains unallocated, leaving corporate and sovereign buyers as the main drivers during this bear phase.
Odaily星球日报04/25 14:56
