Bitget CEO Gracy Chen says Oct. 10 hurt altcoins (3:39)
As Bitcoin (BTC) continues sliding, Bitget CEO Gracy Chen thinks the recent weakness has less to do with deteriorating fundamentals and more to do with a structural liquidity shock that hit the crypto market on Oct. 10 last year.
Speaking with TheStreet Roundtable host Jackson Hinkle, Chen argued that crypto’s macro backdrop remains constructive despite the ongoing price slump.
“The fundamentals still look pretty good for crypto or for Bitcoin in general to go up,” Chen said.
Interest rates are going down, the new U.S. administration has been crypto-friendly, and there is global blockchain adoption around real-world assets such as stablecoins, she underlined.
Major asset managers have also embraced the space, with firms like BlackRock (NYSE: BLK) increasingly incorporating crypto into portfolios and business strategies, she added.
Oct. 10 event a structural change
Bitcoin hit the record high price of $126,080 on Oct. 6. But the Oct. 10 crash wiped out over $19 billion from the market and the digital assets market is yet to recover from the stock. Bitcoin is trading a little above $69,000 at the moment.
According to Chen, Oct. 10 was the ultimate turning point when a major liquidity event triggered a sharp contraction in trading activity.
For the past four months, that’s "probably" been a structural change for Bitcoin price due to low liquidity, she said.
Within a week of the Oct. 10 event, exchange trading volumes dropped 20%-40% across cryptocurrencies, she noted. The decline has been particularly devastating for altcoins, she added.
“I feel the October 10th liquidation has been quite harmful to the industry, especially to altcoins,” she said.
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How Bitget is navigating volatility
Chen said Bitget is positioning itself to weather the crypto market volatility by expanding product offerings beyond simple buy-and-hold strategies.
The crypto trading exchange is focusing on what she called “universal asset coverage,” allowing users to diversify into other asset classes and explore wealth management strategies using the USDT stablecoin, rather than concentrating solely on Bitcoin exposure.
Chen highlighted high liquidity, 24/7 trading, and user experience as key priorities for Bitget.
Chen still a Bitcoin maximalist
Though Chen admitted that conditions have been “quite hard” across the industry, she still described herself as a “Bitcoin maxi” and added she has "faith."
At current Bitcoin price levels, she suggested Bitcoin may present an opportunity for investors with multi-year time horizons.
“For my friends or family who ask me if they should buy some Bitcoin, I would say if you have very few positions, it’s probably a good time to buy Bitcoin,” Chen said.
For the upcoming 5-10 years time horizon, if you’re a long-term holder, Bitcoin's price right now is still "very, very cheap,” she added.
Last year, Chen said that Bitcoin hitting $200,000 in 2025 "is not crazy." But the highest it could hit was north of $126,000 just before the Oct. 10 event.
At the time of writing, Bitcoin was trading at $69,170.64.
Related: Bitget CEO: Bitcoin hitting $200K in 2025 ‘is not crazy’
