Bitcoin Bulls Rattled as Price Plunges, Saylor’s Treasury Faces $900M Paper Loss

If you ever needed a reminder that leverage is a cruel mistress, the past 24 hours in crypto have delivered a masterclass. As of 2026-02-02, Bitcoin’s price has cratered below $75,000, sending shockwaves through a market that, until last week, was still humming Michael Saylor’s favorite hymn: perpetual accumulation. Now, with $704 million in liquidations and Saylor’s own treasury operation staring down a $900 million unrealized loss, the narrative is shifting from “diamond hands” to “who’s left holding the bag?”

The drama started quietly enough. On the surface, Bitcoin’s slide from its euphoric $124,700 highs to the current $74,600 might look like a garden-variety correction. But context is everything. The drop has been relentless, with leveraged longs getting systematically flushed as each support level gave way. According to Coinpaper and Tokenpost, the latest flush triggered a cascade of margin calls, with the IBIT ETF—BlackRock’s flagship Bitcoin vehicle—logging historic losses. Saylor, undeterred, signaled more buying, but the market’s response was a collective shrug. The bid evaporated, and the next support at $60,000–$63,000 is now in play.

This isn’t just about Saylor’s pain. Bitcoin’s dominance means the entire crypto complex is feeling the heat. As Tokenpost notes, altcoins still move in lockstep with Bitcoin, a decade after the “decoupling” narrative first made the rounds. The carnage is broad-based, with Ethereum threatening to lose its $2,100 support and liquidity drying up across DeFi. The only thing that’s up is volatility—and the collective heart rate of anyone who thought “number go up” was a permanent state of being.

Historically, Bitcoin corrections of this magnitude have been opportunities for the brave and the liquid. But there’s a difference between buying a healthy dip and catching a falling knife. The speed and scale of this move are reminiscent of the 2022 Luna collapse or the 2021 May flash crash, but with one key difference: institutional money is now on the hook. BlackRock’s IBIT ETF, once the poster child for mainstream adoption, is suddenly a cautionary tale about the dangers of crowding into a single trade. The ETF’s historic losses are a wake-up call for anyone who thought “ETF flows” were a one-way ticket to the moon.

The macro backdrop isn’t helping. With Kevin Warsh nominated as the next Fed Chair and global risk assets under pressure, the bid for crypto as an “uncorrelated asset” is looking more like a punchline. Asian equities are down, metals are in freefall (silver off 27%), and the dollar is flexing. The risk-off mood is palpable. Even the “buy the dip” crowd is looking for a reason to wait. As one analyst put it, “when the ETF crowd is underwater, there’s no one left to sell to—except each other.”

Strykr Watch

Technically, Bitcoin is hanging by a thread. The $75,000 level, once a psychological floor, has been sliced through like warm butter. The next real support sits at $63,000, with some analysts eyeing the round number at $60,000 as the last line of defense. On-chain metrics show long-term holders are still in profit, but short-term holders are deep in the red—a classic setup for forced selling if the slide accelerates. RSI is oversold, but that’s been the case for days. The 200-day moving average is all the way down at $58,000, a level that would trigger outright panic if tested. For now, the path of least resistance is lower, unless buyers step in with real size.

The ETF flows are the wild card. If outflows accelerate, the selling could become self-fulfilling. Conversely, a stabilization above $70,000 could spark a short-covering rally. But with liquidity thin and sentiment fragile, traders should expect more two-way volatility. Watch for failed breakdowns or a flush to $63,000—that’s where the real battle will be fought.

The risks here are obvious. If Bitcoin loses $60,000, the next stop is anyone’s guess. The ETF crowd could become forced sellers, and the “institutional floor” narrative would be dead. On the other hand, a sharp reversal could catch shorts offside and trigger a face-ripping rally. But with Saylor’s treasury operation now under water and the ETF crowd licking its wounds, the burden of proof is on the bulls.

For traders, the opportunities are equally clear. Aggressive players can look to fade panic below $63,000 with tight stops. More conservative types should wait for a base to form and confirmation of a reversal. If Bitcoin can reclaim $75,000, the risk-reward shifts back to the upside, with $85,000 as the next logical target. But until then, this is a market for disciplined risk management, not hero trades.

Strykr Take

This isn’t the end of the Bitcoin story, but it’s a brutal reminder that leverage cuts both ways. The ETF era was supposed to bring stability, but all it’s done is amplify the swings. Saylor will keep buying, but the market doesn’t care. For now, survival is the name of the game. When the dust settles, there will be opportunities—but only for those who kept their powder dry. Strykr Pulse 38/100. Threat Level 4/5.