Bitwise’s Hougan says Q3 charts point to ‘crypto spring’

Bitwise chief investment officer Matt Hougan says Q3 may have been “one of the best quarters in crypto’s history,” arguing a sharp rebound in crypto prices and growing onchain markets point to the start of “crypto spring.”

In its quarterly market review published Thursday, Bitwise reported a 46.4% quarterly gain in its large-cap crypto index, along with $6 billion in US spot Bitcoin ETF inflows that brought year-to-date net flows back into positive territory. 

The growth extended beyond the price of cryptocurrencies. The value of tokenized equities rose 65.5% to nearly $3.2 billion, while open interest on decentralized perpetual futures hit a new record near $26 billion, with a growing share tied to stocks, commodities, foreign exchange and pre-IPO shares.

“Page after page after page, it’s all the same: The most recent part of the chart is turning sharply upwards,” Hougan wrote. “That’s exactly what you want to see if you’re looking for the start of a crypto spring.”

Crypto analysts have been debating whether the market slump is finally over. CryptoQuant said in September that technical and onchain indicators confirmed a new Bitcoin bull market, while Bitget chief analyst Ryan Lee told Cointelegraph that more indicators were needed to confirm a cycle bottom. Hougan pointed to ETF flows and onchain activity as additional signs of a potential recovery.