#BTCNextMove More Pain Likely, Market Expert Says After Bitcoin's Biggest Loss Since August

BTC may remain on the defensive for some time, presenting a "buy the dip" opportunity to investors, according to Bitwise's Andre Dragosch.

What to know: $BTC

We will likely see more pain in the coming weeks as the Fed is stuck between a rock and a hard place, Andre Dragosch, director and head of research Europe at Bitwise.

Ongoing tailwinds from BTC's supply deficit means extended price dips could be buying opportunities, Dragosch added.

Bitwise's Europe head of research, who has been accurately bullish on bitcoin (BTC) for months, has turned cautious after last week's 8% dip, warning of deeper losses in the coming weeks.

Bitcoin, the leading cryptocurrency by market value, fell 8.8% to nearly $95,000 last week, the biggest percentage drop since August, according to data source TradingView and CoinDesk Indices. The losses came as the Federal Reserve signaled fewer rate cuts for next year while stressing that it prohibited from holding BTC and doesn't seek a change in the law to do so.

The so-called hawkish rate projections also roiled sentiment in traditional markets, leading to a 2% drop in the S&P 500 and a 0.8% gain in the dollar index, lifting it to the highest since October 2022. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note, the so-called risk-free rate, rose 14 basis points, breaking out bullishly from a technical pattern.

The risk-off mood may persist for some time, according to Andre Dragosch, director and head of research Europe at Bitwise.

"The big macro picture is that the Fed is stuck between a rock and a hard place as financial conditions have continued to tighten despite 3 consecutive rate cuts since September. Meanwhile, real-time measures of consumer price inflation have re-accelerated over the past months to new highs as well judging by truflation‘s indicator for U.S. inflation," Dragosch told CoinDesk.

Dragosch is one of the few observers who correctly predicted a massive BTC price rally in late July when the sentiment was hardly bullish.