Those who are new to Bitcoin can think that the recent events are very upsetting. The prices are in stable decline and, whether you like it or not, this is a bear market. If we take a closer look at prices, there was a 75% fall from $69,000 to $17,600. Several types of crypto just disappeared, such as Luna/UST ponzi and Three Arrows Capital. Other crypto experience strong stress, such as Celsius which stops withdrawals or Voyager which announced huge losses caused by exposure to Three Arrows Capital.

The current situation with bitcoin

After 2017, the price of bitcoin was close to $20,000 for the whole year and then it became clear that there is a bear market. Last year bitcoin was as high as $69,000. Probably it was exactly after the fall of Luna that crypto started to experience stress as well. 

So, we have to face our new reality. If before it was considered normal to buy bitcoin and keep it for four years. You could never go down like that. But now this is no longer true. For example, if you bought it in 2017 at $19,600 you could hold it straight till the recent fall to $17,300.

Keeping bitcoin for a long time: win or loss

So, does it still make sense to keep bitcoin for a long time? Well, when people think about high prices in 2017, they keep in mind $20,000. But they forget that almost all year the price was lower than $10,000. So only if you chose long-term stacking you could benefit from the rise. 

Today is definitely not the easiest time to invest. The macroeconomic environment is difficult, inflation rates are getting very high worldwide. It is becoming hard to invest in stocks and bonds. 

Now is the time to buy cheap bitcoin

Experts say that while many other assets can still face trouble, bitcoin has already gone through deleveraging and now is getting more stable. Many investors understood that investing in bitcoin is getting comparatively safer because bitcoin doesn’t depend on central banks and governments. 

Another optimistic side of the current situation is that you can buy bitcoins relatively cheaply. There always have been talks that the first owners of bitcoins were at an advantage and could buy them way cheaper. Well, now history gives you a nice moment to catch up. The market is likely to go up in a few years. And probably other people will look at you with envy in a couple of years. This is not the first fall of bitcoin and a rise will definitely follow. 

Online payments grow and strengthen bitcoin

The growth of Lightning payments also contributes to P2P market development and bitcoin growth as well. Several apps, such as a popular audio streaming app Sphinx, have introduced Lightning-powered payment systems to speed up payments. A number of services have appeared on the market to simplify the process of setting up the BTCPay Server and Lightning. This simplicity leads to the appearance of Lightning-powered gaming companies and news sites. 

Payments via Lightning are getting more reliable

Lightning service providers and turbo channels are two relatively new concepts that make Lightning-powered mobile wallets even more popular. LSPs let users get satoshis very fast. And turbo channels exclude waiting from the process of confirmation. 

Some experts say that the current situation will result in the growth of P2P markets. Individuals will soon start to trade more by exchanging their goods for bitcoin. 

Bitcoin is getting closer to average people

Though initially bitcoin seemed to be a toy of rich people and speculators, today bitcoin is getting closer to people. At the recent Oslo Freedom Forum, there were so many representatives from Togo, Ethiopia, Afghanistan, and other not very rich countries. People are using bitcoin to protect their savings from high inflation and pushy bank policies. Now, bitcoin is getting more about people. Special events and bitcoin academies are being organized to teach people how to safely use bitcoin, how to protect their privacy, and how to set things up right. 

To conclude, bitcoin experienced such falls before. It will go up and fall once again in the future. This time is an opportunity to buy satoshis at a cheap price and see in the future that your decision was correct.