Bitcoin Flashes Bear Market Signal: Losses Outpace Gains for the First Time Since 2022

24-Feb-2026 Crypto Economy

TL;DR

  • Realized loss ratio drops below 1.0, a historically reliable bear market signal.
  • Realized losses near $500M daily, reflecting intense selling pressure and capitulation.
  • Bitcoin price at $63,200; critical support at $60,000, with downside risks looming.

On February 24, 2026, Bitcoin’s on-chain data sent a clear warning to markets. The Realized Profit/Loss Ratio, measured by its 90-day moving average, dropped below 1.0 — a level that historically only appears during the deepest phases of bear markets. In plain terms: most people who sold Bitcoin in recent months did so at a loss, not a gain.

Bitcoin’s price hovers around $63,200, reflecting a 29% decline over the past month and nearly 50% below its all-time high. BTC erased all the gains accumulated after the 2024 U.S. elections and returned to a zone of high uncertainty.

The seven-day average for net realized losses reached approximately $500 million per day according to Glassnode data, and some CryptoQuant estimates push that figure closer to $2.3 billion per week, placing the event among the largest in Bitcoin’s history. The numbers reflect forced selling and panic selling — the kind of broad exit that analysts call capitulation.

The weight of losses does not fall exclusively on retail investors

The Unspent Profitability Ratios of large holders — commonly known as whales — dropped to levels comparable to May and June of 2022, a period that preceded an even steeper decline before the market formed its definitive bottom. When traders with the greatest capacity to hold also exit at a loss, price pressure intensifies across every segment of the market.

The Crypto Fear & Greed Index reinforces that chart: it registered a score of 5 out of 100, classified as “Extreme Fear” — a reading that only appeared on a handful of occasions since 2018.

Bitcoin was rejected at $70,000 and dropped over $2,000 to below $68,000, keeping XRP under $1.50 and DOGE under $0.10.

On the technical side, analyst Ali Martinez flagged the potential formation of a “death cross” on the three-day chart, a pattern in which the short-term moving average crosses below the long-term one. In 2014, 2018, and 2022, that pattern preceded additional declines of between 30% and 50%.

Crypto Economy analysts are watching the $60,000 to $63,000 range as a key support zone. If Bitcoin loses that level, cascading liquidations could open the door to ranges between $55,000 and $47,000.

Also read: Mapping XRP’s road to $0.78 after $45M inflow shock hits market
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