Bankless co-founders said BTC climbed into the month from the $60,000s, unlike last year’s slide from a record high.
- Bitcoin was down over 2% so far in October, putting it on track for its first back-to-back losing October in more than 10 years.
- October has been one of Bitcoin’s strongest months, averaging about 18% gains.
- Last year, Bitcoin hit its all-time high early in the month before an Oct. 10 crash sent it lower.
Bitcoin (BTC) was on track for its first consecutive October decline, with Bankless co-founder David Hoffman calling Friday “the third week of Downtober.”
October has long been one of Bitcoin’s best months. Its average October return was about 18.3%, and its median is about 12.7%, according to CoinGlass data. Before last year, the month had ended lower only twice, in 2014 and 2018.
| Year< | Monthly Returns In October< |
| 2026< | -2.48%< |
| 2025< | -3.69%< |
| 2024< | +10.76%< |
| 2023< | +28.52%< |
| 2022< | +5.56%< |
| 2021< | +39.93%< |
| 2020< | +27.7%< |
| 2019< | +10.17%< |
| 2018< | -3.83%< |
| 2017< | +47.81%< |
| 2016< | +14.71%< |
Source: Coinglass.<
Last October started on a high. Bitcoin hit its all-time high of about $126,000 early in the month, before a crash on October 10 erased those gains. This year it has been different. The world’s largest cryptocurrency was down over 2% so far this month. It also fell more than 3% last October. Bitcoin has not posted two red Octobers in a row in more than 10 years, with its highest gain in October being in 2017.
Bankless co-founders Hoffman and Ryan Sean Adams discussed that Bitcoin climbed into October from the $60,000s, rather than falling from a record. “The direction of travel is quite different,” one of them said.
This Week’s Slide
Bitcoin dipped to around $80,000 this week, its lowest level since September 18. It is down about 7% for the year. The selling had been heavier in altcoins, where Ethereum (ETH) fell about 7.5% over the week, the hosts said, while tokens like Solana (SOL), Zchas (ZEC), Hyperliquid (HYPE) and Near Protocol (NEAR) dropped another 10% after double-digit losses the week before.
‘They Feel Sideways’
The hosts argued that a choppy market fits an early bull run. They pointed to 2023, when Bitcoin spent about seven months moving sideways and suffered two 17% pullbacks. Through that stretch, Bitcoin held above its 50-week moving average.
“So that’s kind of the way early bull markets feel. They feel sideways,” Adams said. Neither expected Bitcoin to fall below its low from a few months ago. “We have broken the back of the bear market,” Adams added.
Bitcoin’s monthly returns have swung widely this year. CoinGlass data showed it fell about 10% in January, 15% in February, and 20% in June, but gained about 25% in August.
Read also: Bitcoin Bounces Off Its Lowest Point In A Month, But Charles Schwab’s Adam Lynch Warns A Midterms Risk
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