Author: Anthony Pompliano, Founder and CEO of Professional Capital Management; Translated by Shaw Jinse Finance
Last Friday, financial markets were gripped by panic, sending asset prices plummeting. The sell-off began around noon but accelerated after President Trump announced on social media Friday afternoon that he would impose new 100% tariffs on Chinese goods.
As if investors had forgotten the tariff panic of April, they rushed to sell off all sorts of assets. Since the stock market had just closed, the main impact was felt in after-hours trading.
But the Bitcoin and cryptocurrency markets never sleep. We witnessed a sell-off in these assets, with the speed and depth of the price drop being the worst I can recall in the past decade. Bitcoin plummeted from approximately $121,000 to approximately $108,000 in just a few minutes. This was one of Bitcoin's rare daily candlesticks above $10,000, but unfortunately, it went in the wrong direction. Before I explain why the sell-off was bullish, you should know that this market pullback wasn't entirely unexpected. At 10 a.m. ET on Friday, my friend Jordi Visser and I sat down to record our weekly conversation. In that conversation, Jordi clearly identified the possibility of a market pullback in the short term. He described himself as optimistic about the market in the medium and long term, but much more cautious in the short term. A few hours later, the pullback began and accelerated throughout the day. Honestly, this is one of the most prescient perspectives anyone has shared on the podcast since we started. Impressive, to say the least. But the good news is that the October 2025 bear market is officially over. Why? President Trump assured on social media Sunday evening that "everything is going to be fine" and that "the United States wants to help China, not hurt it!" This reassurance is exactly what the market needed. Last night we saw stock index futures open higher, and the price of Bitcoin also climbed back above $115,000 per coin. So, what have I learned from this debacle over the past few days? First, if you sell Bitcoin amid geopolitical uncertainty, you'll never understand what you've got. This decentralized digital currency aims to provide people with a place to store their hard-earned economic value without relying on any nation-state for support. Not only is it a powerful concept, but its value should only grow as geopolitical uncertainty continues to intensify in the coming years. Second, if Bitcoin can drop $15,000 in price in a single day, it means it can also rise $15,000 in a single day in the future. Consider reflexivity. It would require an extraordinary news or development for that to happen, but the market is showing us it's possible. Third, if you were bullish on Bitcoin and stocks three days ago, you should be even more bullish now. Nothing has changed in the fundamentals over the past 72 hours. We just went through a healthy correction, removing excess leverage from the system. Now the market is poised to continue its upward trend. Fourth, imagine 10 years ago telling someone, "The largest-ever cryptocurrency liquidation of over $19 billion has driven the price of Bitcoin down to $108,000." We dream of such days. Over time, the price of Bitcoin will rise even higher. So, whatever you think of Friday's events, I don't think investors will care or remember them in a week. That's how markets work these days. They move at lightning speed. Investors are forgetful. Everything is focused on the future. President Trump sent the market plummeting on Friday and then rallied on Sunday. You may not like it, but that's the reality. And it will continue to happen. Geopolitical negotiations are taking place on social media. Investors will continue to overreact in the short term. However, long-term investors have nothing to worry about. Avoid excessive leverage, understand your assets, and you can have peace of mind. Bitcoin's rise is inevitable. They will never stop printing money, so Bitcoin will never stop rising. God bless Satoshi Nakamoto for inventing a solution to one of the world's most intractable problems.