Bitcoin Briefly Drops Over the Weekend, Experts Say the ‘Tulip’ Narrative Is Dead

Bitcoin hovered under pressure heading into the new trading week, slipping below $88,000 as investors braced for a pivotal U.S. Federal Reserve decision, even as market analysts argued that the cryptocurrency’s long-term resilience puts an end to persistent “tulip bubble” comparisons.

The world’s largest digital asset briefly dipped toward $87,000 during Sunday’s weekly close, reversing an otherwise calm weekend and setting up the possibility of a new price gap on CME Group’s Bitcoin futures market. Traders noted that such gaps have been consistently “filled” within days once macro-market trading resumes. However, it went back up and is now trading at $91,000.

Market watcher Killa pointed out that weekends often shape the pivot points that define Monday trading, adding that a lack of weekend upside typically sets the stage for a Monday low, according to Cointelegraph. That dynamic appeared to play out once again as Bitcoin weakened ahead of one of the week’s biggest macro events: the Federal Open Market Committee’s (FOMC) interest-rate announcement.

All Eyes on the Fed

Investor attention remains squarely on whether the Federal Reserve will deliver a 0.25% rate cut, a scenario heavily priced in by futures markets, according to the CME FedWatch Tool. Historically, Bitcoin has shown a tendency to soften as FOMC meetings approach, with volatility often accelerating as traders interpret the Fed’s guidance on future policy moves.

Crypto analyst Michaël van de Poppe warned that Bitcoin could revisit the $86,000 area before finding support. He still expects a rebound afterward, arguing that a supportive macro backdrop, including reduced quantitative tightening, potential rate cuts, and expanding money supply, could fuel a run toward $100,000 in the coming weeks.

Bitcoin vs. Tulip Mania: A Debate Reignited

While near-term price swings dominate trader sentiment, a separate discussion is gaining traction among industry experts: whether Bitcoin’s turbulence resembles the famous 17th-century Dutch tulip bubble.

For Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas, the comparison no longer holds. Speaking over the weekend, he noted that tulip bulbs skyrocketed and crashed within a short three-year frenzy, collapsing by over 90% in just weeks. Bitcoin, by contrast, has endured nearly two decades of drawdowns, recoveries, regulatory cycles, exchange failures, and global crises and still reached new all-time highs.

“Bitcoin has taken multiple hits and keeps coming back,” Balchunas argued. “Seventeen years of survival and a series of full recoveries make the tulip analogy outdated.”

He emphasized that Bitcoin remains up sharply over longer timeframes, even after this year’s corrections. Cooling periods, he added, are not only expected but healthy, a norm across many asset classes, productive or not.

The debate resurfaced after well-known investors, including Michael Burry of “The Big Short” fame, revived critiques likening Bitcoin to a speculative bubble bound to burst. JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon made similar claims in earlier years. But analysts like Balchunas say such comparisons ignore Bitcoin’s demonstrated ability to weather repeated cycles.

Garry Krug, strategy head at German Bitcoin treasury platform Aifinyo, echoed the sentiment, noting that “bubbles don’t survive multiple market cycles, regulatory battles, halvings, exchange collapses, and still return to new highs.”

A Market at a Crossroads

As Bitcoin navigates short-term macro pressures and long-term questions about its durability, the market appears split between caution and conviction. Near-term volatility tied to the Fed’s rate decision may continue to weigh on price action, but many analysts argue that Bitcoin’s structural resilience, on full display across 17 years, puts speculative bubble narratives firmly in the past.