Bitcoin hits highest level since January at $85,000, as the market debates whether the 'crypto winter' is over

Bitcoin rose above $85,000 on Monday as the cryptocurrency continued its sharp rally over the past few days.

Bitcoin was trading at $84,256 at around 06:35 a.m. ET, up around 3.8%, according to CoinMetrics. Earlier in the day, the cryptocurrency rose as high as $85,229, its highest level since late January.

Investors are assessing whether the "crypto winter" — a depressed period of digital asset prices — which began after bitcoin hit an all-time high of over $126,000 in October 2025, is over.

"I do think it's over, it's crypto spring, the crocuses are blooming," Matt Hougan, CIO at Bitwise, told CNBC's "Squawk Box Europe" on Monday.

"I think this will actually be the strongest and longest-running bull market in crypto's history."

While bitcoin is still down this year, it has risen more than 7% in the last 5 days and nearly 35% over the last 3 months. It is still well off its record high.

Bitcoin price year-to-date.

Hougan said even though the market was down for a while, the "fundamentals went up" in cryptocurrency, pointing to more transactions across blockchains and involvement from major firms like BlackRock.

"So I think we had this unusual situation where you had a cyclical decline in prices even as you had a secular improvement in fundamentals. And now I suspect that prices are going to catch up toward the end of the year," Hougan said.