Santiment Warns Crypto Bottom Calls May Be Premature as Sentiment Turns Sharply Negative

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Crypto sentiment tracker Santiment is urging traders to stay cautious as declarations of a market bottom grow louder across social platforms. The firm says widespread confidence that the worst is over often appears before further declines—not after.

Crowd Confidence May Signal More Downside

According to Santiment, a surge in bottom-calling began after Bitcoin briefly slipped under $95,000 on Friday, dragged down by weakness in tech stocks. The platform argues that market lows rarely form when traders are expecting a rebound. Instead, true bottoms tend to emerge when fear dominates and expectations tilt lower.

The recent wave of optimistic calls, triggered in part by Bitcoin falling below the psychologically important $100,000 level, may therefore be a contrarian signal. Santiment notes that historically, bottoms often appear when the majority assumes prices will continue to drop—not when they’re actively predicting a turnaround.

Sentiment Drops Despite Bullish Long-Term Targets

Even as analysts like Arthur Hayes and Tom Lee reaffirm bullish year-end targets of $200,000 or more, broader social sentiment around Bitcoin has deteriorated. Santiment reports that positive comments on BTC have fallen to their lowest level in more than a month, while Bitcoin’s share of overall crypto discussion has risen above 40%.
The platform interprets this as investors fixating on the asset out of fear, rather than enthusiasm.

Social chatter also spiked around MicroStrategy chairman Michael Saylor, with some traders incorrectly blaming him for triggering Friday’s price drop. Saylor denied any Bitcoin sales in a CNBC appearance, calling the rumors unfounded.

ETF Outflows Could Tell a Different Story

Despite the negative mood, Santiment points to one development that may ultimately favor Bitcoin: accelerating spot ETF outflows. The firm argues that major inflows have historically aligned with local tops, while large outflows have tended to accompany market bottoms, driven by retail panic.

U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs saw $1.17 billion flow out over the past three trading days, including $866 million on Thursday—the second-largest daily outflow on record. While painful in the short term, Santiment suggests this behavior could set the stage for a price stabilization later on.

With sentiment sliding and traders calling a bottom, Santiment warns this environment has historically preceded more volatility. Yet ETF outflows may quietly indicate that selling pressure is nearing exhaustion. For now, the market remains split between fear-driven pessimism and confident long-term forecasts.

Disclaimer: The information in this article is for general purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. The author’s views are personal and may not reflect the views of Chain Affairs. Before making any investment decisions, you should always conduct your own research. Chain Affairs is not responsible for any financial losses.