As the price of Bitcoin has halved from its historical high, a silent "psychological war" is spreading among retail investors. Data shows that the search intensity for "Bitcoin is dead" and "Bitcoin going to zero" reached a historical peak this month. Is this phenomenon a death knell for the market, or the last dawn before the storm?

1. History Repeats: Search Interest Hits Extreme Since FTX Collapse

● February 2026 is destined to be a page etched in the history of fear for the cryptocurrency market. According to Google Trends, the global search volume for the keyword "Bitcoin is dead" surged to a peak of 100 this month, matching the historical record set during the FTX collapse in November 2022.

● At the same time, the even more apocalyptic search term "Bitcoin going to zero" also did not hold back, reaching a historical high in the United States. This search behavior that only occurs during extreme despair in the market is now surging like a tide, reflecting the collective panic deep within retail investors.

2. Macro Avalanche: Price Halving and Tariff Black Swan

● This search panic is not without cause. According to reports from Zhongshi News Network, former US President Trump announced a shock decision on February 21, increasing the temporary global tariff rate to 15%. This news, like a boulder dropping into water, triggered violent fluctuations in various risky assets.

● As the bellwether of risky assets, Bitcoin plummeted, falling below the $68,000 mark. Reflecting on October 2025, Bitcoin stood majestically at $126,000, but has now dropped nearly 50% from its peak, with a shocking evaporation of market value.

● The panic sentiment in the market has even shown significant geographical division. Data from Cointelegraph indicates that while the search intensity for "Bitcoin going to zero" soared to a peak score of 100 within the US, the global search intensity was only 38. This temperature difference indicates that American investors are far more sensitive to macro variables like the tariff war and geopolitical situation than their peers in Eurasia.

3. The Whisper of Data: Is it a "Surrender Signal" or a True Bottom?

● In the eyes of analysts, this concentration of apocalyptic sentiment is often not a period at the end of a sentence, but a critical comma. According to reports from Gate News, this extreme panic is usually interpreted as market "capitulation" behavior—when retail investors can no longer bear the agony of losses and choose to cut losses and exit or search in despair, it often means the exhaustion of selling pressure, and the market may be standing at the threshold of a cyclical bottom.

● Looking back in history, the "death notices" of Bitcoin have long piled up. According to statistics from 99Bitcoins, Bitcoin has been declared "dead" by foreign media as many as 477 times since 2010. Each major crisis—from the crash in 2013 to the event on March 12, 2020—was accompanied by the notion that "Bitcoin is dead," but each time, this financial monster has risen from the ashes, even charging towards higher peaks.

● Analysts from Mhmarkets also remind that during several crashes in 2021 and 2022, the "peak" of such search volumes in the US often resonated oddly with the "bottom" of prices, providing valuable coordinates for contrarian investors.

4. Underlying Capital Currents: Who is Panicking, Who is Bottom Fishing?

● Beneath the surface of panic lies an intriguing flow of funds. Despite retail investors frantically searching for "going to zero" on Google, smart money seems to be quietly acting.

● Data shows that despite the gloomy market, the world's largest exchange, Binance, has recorded over $3 billion in net inflow in the past week. This influx of enormous capital indicates that while retail investors are cutting losses, large players or institutions are absorbing the chips.

● On-chain data analysts point out that the recent corrections have led to realized losses reaching a historical high, a level of loss not seen since the crashes of 2018 and 2020, which is usually characteristic of a phase bottom.

● Faced with this bizarre data, even Binance founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) couldn't help but repost on X platform, posing the soul-searching question: "Is this a bad signal or a good signal?"

5. Bull-Bear Battle: Divergence in Professional Opinions

At the darkest moment of the market, experts' views have severely polarized.

● Economist Timothy Peterson remains bullish. Based on historical cycle data of Bitcoin since 2011, he believes the current indicators show that Bitcoin is at a new turning point, predicting it could rebound to $122,000 by the end of 2026.

● Renowned analyst Michaël van de Poppe states that when the search volume for "Bitcoin going to zero" escalates, it is precisely the moment when investors should increase their buying strength. He advocates that this extreme negative sentiment is often a golden signal for contrarian investment.

● However, pessimistic sentiment remains pervasive. Columnists from the Financial Times continue to assert that even if Bitcoin falls to $69,000, it is still overvalued. Deutsche Bank strategists also publicly question whether Bitcoin's status as "digital gold" can still hold in the current turbulent macro environment.

6. Evolution Rather Than Extinction: The Deep Evolution of Market Structure

Perhaps stepping outside of the ups and downs of prices allows for a clearer view of more fundamental things. The analysis from Gate News indicates that the current crypto market is not heading towards extinction, but is undergoing a profound evolution.

● While meme coins and most altcoins struggle for survival in the bear market, funds are flowing towards areas with realistic application scenarios. The blockchain-based prediction market Polymarket saw its trading volume reach $21.5 billion in 2025, and an impressive $12 billion in January 2026 alone, with its valuation soaring to $11.6 billion.

● Meanwhile, Ethereum's roadmap for 2026 is no longer solely focused on DeFi and NFTs, but is looking at the integration of scalability and AI agents (like the ERC-8004 standard), attempting to embed blockchain technology into more mature technology application scenarios.

● This may reveal the truth: What is dead is not Bitcoin, but the past speculative frenzy; what remains alive is the market foundation that is seeking real value.

In the brief history of cryptocurrencies, the rhetoric of "Bitcoin is dead" has accompanied nearly every downturn.

477 declarations of death have not been able to stop it from surviving tenaciously. When the fear in Google searches reaches its peak, when retail investors surrender their blood-stained chips in despair, the turning point of the market often quietly sprouts from such extreme pessimism. This time, will history rhyme again? Time will provide the final answer.

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