**Bitcoin Market Faces Bearish Signal Amid Rising Japanese Interest Rates**

The Bitcoin Bull-Bear Market Cycle Indicator has recently signaled a bear phase, following Japan's interest rate hike and a strengthening yen. This is the first bearish signal since January 2023, shortly after the FTX collapse.

Julio Moreno of CryptoQuant highlighted the indicator's accuracy in predicting downturns during past events like the COVID-19 panic and China's mining ban. CryptoQuant founder Ki Young Ju advises monitoring the signal for two weeks to confirm a sustained bear market.

Japan's interest rate increase from 0.1% to 0.25% led to a rush of asset liquidations, causing over $1 billion to be pulled from crypto markets, including $367 million in Bitcoin and $350 million in Ether. Despite this, markets have shown some recovery since August 5.

Traders remain divided on whether this downturn is temporary or prolonged, with some cautioning that the third quarter, especially August and September, is typically challenging for Bitcoin.