Bitcoin has plunged to a 15-month low of $66,000, marking a 24% decline since January 2026 and a 32% drop over the past year. This significant downturn occurs despite former President Donald Trump’s vigorous personal and policy support for the cryptocurrency sector since returning to office in January 2025.
Trump’s administration has implemented what Senate Democrats have termed a “pro-crypto agenda,” including an executive order positioning the U.S. as the “crypto capital of the planet,” federal backing legislation, dissolution of a Justice Department crypto enforcement team, and reduced SEC oversight. The president has personally benefited from these policies, amassing crypto holdings worth over $11 billion and generating $800 million in personal income from crypto transactions, according to Senate Judiciary Committee findings.
The current decline follows Bitcoin’s October 2025 all-time high of $122,200, which was partially fueled by investor optimism about Trump’s policies. However, analysts from Deutsche Bank identify Trump’s nomination of Kevin Warsh as Federal Reserve chair as the trigger for the recent sell-off. The bank notes four consecutive months of declining prices and growing negative sentiment among traditional investors.
Market data reveals broader crypto weakness, with Ethereum and Solana both down approximately 37% in 2026. According to CoinGecko, the cryptocurrency market has lost over $1 trillion in value in the past month and $2 trillion since its October peak.
Investment firm Stifel predicts Bitcoin could fall as low as $38,000, citing a new correlation with the U.S. dollar’s performance after the currency recently hit a four-year low. Deutsche Bank suggests Bitcoin is transitioning from a “purely speculative asset” to one that “needs to find its specific role” in the financial ecosystem, indicating they don’t expect a return to Trump-driven highs despite cryptocurrency’s likely permanence.