Bitcoin fell under $60,000 for the primary time since October 2024 on Monday, sinking as little as $59,099 — a transfer that marks a decline of greater than 50% from its all-time excessive close to $126,000.
However in accordance with John D’Agostino, Coinbase’s head of institutional technique, the drop is being welcomed — not feared — by essentially the most refined gamers out there.
Showing on CNBC’s Squawk Field Monday morning, D’Agostino stated the institutional buyers he speaks with recurrently are viewing the pullback as a possibility to build up at a reduction, not a motive to panic.
“I just got off a plane from the Middle East, and I can tell you that the family offices in the UAE and the government and sovereign funds that are putting the effort into buying this asset class are not unhappy at being able to buy it at a discount,” D’Agostino stated.
His feedback align with latest information displaying sustained institutional shopping for by way of the downturn.
Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Funding Firm — a $330 billion sovereign wealth fund — reported holding 14.7 million shares of BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Belief (IBIT) as of March 31, 2026, a 16% improve quarter-over-quarter, marking 4 consecutive quarters of accumulation whilst BTC declined roughly 40% from its all-time excessive.
“100 Billion Dollars of Bitcoin ETF Exposure”
Regardless of Bitcoin’s steep correction, D’Agostino pointed to a putting statistic as proof of sturdy retail conviction: Bitcoin ETFs nonetheless maintain roughly $100 billion in publicity even after the value has dropped practically 50% from its peak.
“The price has dropped almost 50% from the peak, and we’ve only seen about a 15% drawdown in retail interest,” D’Agostino famous. “So I think both retail and institutional are signaling this is a long-term asset you want to hold.”
BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Belief alone held roughly $51.9 billion in property beneath administration as of earlier this yr, representing roughly 45% of all spot Bitcoin ETF property.
Some causes for the pullback
When pressed to establish the drivers behind Bitcoin’s “winter,” D’Agostino largely agreed with an inventory provided by the Squawk Field host, which included: risk-off sentiment pushing buyers towards extra liquid positions; rates of interest remaining elevated, weakening the debasement commerce thesis; regulatory readability remaining in legislative limbo; and Technique’s Michael Saylor breaking his long-standing “never sell” pledge by offloading a portion of the corporate’s Bitcoin holdings.
Saylor’s agency executed the sale of 32 bitcoins between Might 26 and Might 31 for roughly $2.5 million — a transfer that rattled market sentiment despite the fact that it represented simply 0.004% of Technique’s complete 843,000+ BTC holdings. The sale triggered a pointy adverse market response that despatched BTC tumbling under $72,000 earlier than the broader slide continued.
D’Agostino additionally cited a 100-day warfare with Iran and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz as macro overhangs making use of stress to danger property globally, whereas noting that crude oil has remained surprisingly subdued under $100 a barrel — a reminder that volatility in complicated macro environments doesn’t at all times comply with instinct.
On the legislative entrance, D’Agostino highlighted payments presently circulating in Congress that he stated would strengthen the institutional infrastructure supporting Bitcoin and digital property extra broadly. The Digital Asset Market Readability Act — referred to as the CLARITY Act — cleared the Senate Banking Committee on Might 14, 2026 with a 15-9 vote, marking the primary complete crypto regulatory framework to advance to the Senate ground.
A separate invoice, the PARITY Act, addressing crypto taxation, can be shifting on an unbiased legislative monitor with bipartisan help.
No panic on the institutional degree
When requested concerning the danger of leveraged holders going through margin calls and compelled liquidations at decrease costs, D’Agostino stated he was not conscious of any main institutional gamers that had been “horrifically overleveraged” at ranges anyplace near present costs. He stated the larger danger stays with retail merchants on offshore exchanges providing excessive leverage.
“On the institutional side, I’m not seeing folks panicking at this point,” D’Agostino stated. “I’m seeing them thinking about what the cheapest way is for them to acquire new capital to buy into an asset that they loved at $125K, they liked at $100K, and they love even more at $65K.”
Technique appeared to underscore that time Monday, disclosing it bought an extra 1,550 BTC for $101 million — shopping for the dip at roughly $65,000 per coin simply days after promoting 32 cash at $77,135 every.
