The Bitcoin Bear Market Will Last Till Q4, Analyst Says: Watch The Four-Year Cycle

Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) may still be locked inside its historical four-year cycle despite ETF adoption, institutional buying and strategic reserve narratives, according to a prominent analyst.

Do Not Overcomplicate The Cycle

In his May 25 podcast, analyst Benjamin Cowen argued that Bitcoin’s latest peak followed the same timing structure seen in prior cycles, with BTC topping in Q4 of the post-halving year before entering a prolonged correction phase.

The market is overcomplicating the cycle narrative when price behavior still closely resembles prior bear market structures from 2014, 2018 and 2022.          

Bitcoin historically bottoms near the end of the midterm year which is the…

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LATEST: Tom Lee’s BitMine Purchases 111,942 ETH Increasing Holdings to 5.39 Million ETH Last Week

Bitmine Immersion Technologies (NYSE: BMNR), chaired by Tom Lee of Fundstrat, added 111,942 ETH last week. This purchase increased its total Ethereum holdings to 5,390,404 ETH as of May 25, 2026. The company, a major public Ethereum treasury holder, made the acquisition during a market pullback.

The holdings now represent approximately 4.47% of Ethereum’s circulating supply. Bitmine is actively staking a significant portion—around 4.7 million ETH—through its in-house operations, generating estimated annual protocol rewards. The firm also maintains substantial cash reserves alongside other assets.

This marks continued accumulation by the company toward its stated goals. Official updates and filings confirm the figures, positioning Bitmine as one of the largest corporate holders of ETH.

Self-Custodial Bitcoin Payments Now Show Verified Merchant Details

Branta, a Bitcoin security company, recently announced integration with Manna Wallet, a self-custodial payments app. Users will now see the logos and company details of merchants they make payments to on Manna before they make a payment, letting them make the purchases with confidence. “Bitcoin payments give users anxiety. Every single time,” said Adam Simecka, CEO of Manna in the announcement, a key fact that to him, explains why Bitcoin adoption is lagging.

“Manna now automatically ensures your payments are going to who they say they are with Branta. When you pay a Branta integrated business, you will see their details and a link to verify yourself. Don’t trust….

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UK Targets Kremlin-Linked Crypto Network In Latest Sanctions Round

The United Kingdom has unveiled a fresh package of sanctions against Russian financial structures that use crypto and offshore payment routes to sidestep restrictions imposed after the invasion of Ukraine. 

The measures focus on the Kremlin-backed A7 network, a ruble-based settlement system, and a cluster of exchanges and firms that route payments through Kyrgyzstan and Georgia.

Announced by Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper, the package covers 18 new designations that target what London describes as the backbone of Russia’s illicit finance channels. 

Officials say the list includes a Kyrgyz bank suspected of handling A7 flows, a major global cryptocurrency exchange that…

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XRP Falls Over 5% In 30 Days: What Is Going On?

XRP (CRYPTO: XRP) is down over 5% over the past month, as diminishing liquidity and bearish sentiment weigh on price action.

XRP’s Falling Liquidity To Lowest Level

In a detailed X post, CryptoQuant data showed that the 30-day XRP liquidity index on Binance dropped to around 0.043, a steep decline from the elevated readings above 3 and 4 seen during the high-volatility trading periods between 2022 and 2024.

With less market depth available, even relatively large orders can move price aggressively in either direction. Thinner liquidity can amplify volatility.

At the same time, XRP has been trading near the $1.34 level while speculative activity and fresh liquidity inflows continue cooling…

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Strive (ASST) Buys 1,109 Bitcoin, Holdings Reach 16,500 BTC

Strive (ASST) added 1,109 bitcoin to its balance sheet last week, lifting total holdings to 16,500 BTC and placing the firm among the largest public corporate holders of the asset, according to a May 26 filing.

The purchases took place between May 19 and May 22 at an average price of $76,989 per coin, bringing Strive to seventh place among listed companies with bitcoin treasuries. The move continues a strategy that ties equity growth to direct exposure to bitcoin.

The company reported cash and cash equivalents of $93.3 million, up from $87.3 million. It also disclosed a rise in the value of its holdings of Strategy Inc.’s STRC preferred stock, which now exceed $50…

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Coinbase’s Eight-Figure Donations Ahead Of ‘Most Consequential’ Midterm Election – Coinbase Global (NASDA

Political War Chest

Armstrong personally donated $1 million to Fairshake, a super PAC backing crypto-friendly candidates, while Coinbase contributed another $24.5 million, according to the report.

Fairshake has raised $85 million so far, with Armstrong and Coinbase accounting for roughly one-third of the total, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday.

The PAC supports pro-crypto candidates from both parties and aims to push for clearer U.S. digital asset rules.

Other major donors include Andreessen Horowitz and Ripple with $20 million each, and Electric Capital with $500,000.

Coinbase remains locked in a legal fight with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which accused the company of operating an…

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Abundant Mines Wins Inaugural Satos Award For Mining & Energy

HOOD RIVER COUNTY, Ore. – May 26, 2026 – Abundant Mines, a premium bitcoin mining and energy infrastructure company, was named the recipient of The Satos Award for Mining & Energy, receiving the recognition during the first year of the program. The honor was presented at the Abundant Mines booth during the Bitcoin Conference 2026. 

The Satos Awards is a bitcoin-only awards program celebrating excellence across the bitcoin ecosystem. Nominations and voting were open to the public and determined entirely by the bitcoin community, making this a direct reflection of sector sentiment. 

“Winning a Satos Award in the inaugural year is truly significant to our team because it…

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Michael Saylor Remains Unconcerned: ‘I Expect The Bitcoin Price Will Go Up Forever’ – Strategy (NASDAQ:MS

Saylor Defends Strategy’s Model

Speaking on Thursday, May 22, during a live Q&A hosted by Coin Stories’ Natalie Brunell alongside CEO Phong Le, Saylor pushed back against concerns that potential Bitcoin sales signal weakness in Strategy’s treasury model.

“I think it’s not unlikely that we’ll sell some Bitcoin between now and the end of the year,” Saylor said. “The goal of the company is to drive Bitcoin per share and to increase its Bitcoin and increase the enterprise value continuously forever.”

“We had 50,000 Satoshi’s per share five years ago. Now we have more than 200,000 Satoshi’s per share,” Saylor said.

The comments come after traders increasingly speculated that Strategy may need to…

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Strategy (MSTR) Retires $1.5 Billion In Convertible Debt At A Discount, Bitcoin Holdings Hit 843,738 BTC

Strategy paused its bitcoin buying machine last week and turned it on debt instead, retiring $1.5 billion of its own convertible bonds at a discount — a move that signals the company is managing its capital structure with the same aggression it once reserved for accumulating bitcoin.

From May 11- May 25, Strategy repurchased $1.5 billion in aggregate principal of its 0% Convertible Senior Notes due 2029, paying approximately $1.38 billion in cash — an 8% discount to face value, the company said. The savings of roughly $120 million reduced the company’s total convertible note obligations from $8.2 billion to $6.7 billion.

Executive Chairman Michael Saylor framed the…

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