The king of crypto just suffered its worst beating in over a year, plunging through $60,000 and erasing months of gains in days. But here’s the twist that has everyone screaming at each other: is this a death spiral triggered by Michael Saylor’s broken “never sell” promise, a massive capital exodus to AI, or something far more sinister? The answer depends entirely on who you ask—and the battle lines are drawn.

The Bloodbath by the Numbers

Bitcoin hit an intraday low of $59,023.98 on June 24, its lowest level since October 2024. That’s a gut-wrenching drop of more than 10% in 24 hours and roughly 53% off its all-time high of $126,277 set last October. The carnage didn’t stop there—over $850 million in crypto liquidations were triggered, with long traders accounting for roughly $780 million of that total. Ethereum slumped below $1,600, Solana slipped under $65, and the entire crypto market cap shrank to approximately $2.1 trillion.

The Great ETF Exodus

The institutional retreat is nothing short of historic. Spot Bitcoin ETFs have recorded six consecutive weeks of net outflows, with $8 billion exiting in the last 30 days alone—a record since these products launched in 2024. BlackRock’s IBIT led the exodus with roughly $182 million in outflows on June 23 alone. Total assets held in bitcoin ETFs have crashed to $77.5 billion from about $113 billion at the end of last year.

“The scale of the reversal went beyond the mere slowing down seen in late 2025,” warned BIT in a June 22 analysis. “Without a major catalyst, buying may not return soon”.

The Blame Game Begins

This is where it gets juicy. The question everyone’s fighting over: who or what is responsible?

Michael Saylor—the man who built Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy) into the world’s largest corporate Bitcoin holder with its iconic “never sell” mantra—has become public enemy number one for some. His company sold 32 BTC between May 26-31, its first disposal since 2022. While the transaction was negligible relative to the company’s holdings, the symbolic weight was devastating. Critics argue this shattered the “diamond hands” narrative that underpinned retail confidence.

But Saylor isn’t taking it lying down. He’s pointing fingers elsewhere. In a June 5 interview that Anthony Scaramucci just reposted, Saylor laid out his case: AI is the culprit. He pointed to roughly $400 billion in capital raised over six months by OpenAI, Google, and SpaceX, against just $4 billion in Bitcoin ETF outflows. “Every single investment bank on Wall Street is out there marketing the Anthropic deal, the OpenAI deal, the Google deal, the SpaceX deal,” Saylor argued.

Crypto investment firm Arca has a one-word response to that theory: “nonsense”. They’re pointing the finger directly at Saylor himself, blaming Strategy’s sale for triggering the cascade.

The Scaramucci Whiplash

Speaking of Scaramucci—talk about a 180-degree turn. The SkyBridge Capital founder just days ago called Bitcoin “an asset nobody cares about” on the All-In Markets podcast. Then on June 24, he reposted a Saylor interview with the caption “I ride with @saylor $BTC”. That’s the kind of flip-flop that makes traders’ heads spin and fuels endless Twitter drama.

Even Bitcoin’s biggest believers are showing cracks. Coatue founder Philippe Laffont admitted on CNBC he “no longer knows what to think about Bitcoin” now that mega-IPOs and stablecoins offer competing speculative outlets. He called Bitcoin belief “a bit like a cult” where investors are either fully in or fully out.

The Macro Hammer

Here’s what both sides actually agree on: the Federal Reserve is making life miserable for risk assets. With U.S.-Iran tensions pushing crude oil prices higher and reigniting inflation fears, Fed officials have walked back any talk of rate cuts—and some have even floated the possibility of rate hikes. Deutsche Bank analyst Marion Laboure noted that investors have pulled more than $6 billion from bitcoin ETFs, the longest losing streak since 2024.

“The marginal buyer is no longer a retail investor but an ETF allocator or corporate treasury—and increasingly, that same investor is weighing bitcoin against AI,” Laboure said. “When these participants withdraw or rotate elsewhere, the decline is faster and more mechanical.”

The Bull Case That Won’t Die

Not everyone’s throwing in the towel. Standard Chartered’s Geoffrey Kendrick declared that Bitcoin’s drop to $59,000 “marks the definitive cycle bottom” and reaffirmed the bank’s year-end target of $100,000—roughly 70% upside from current levels. He tied his conviction to three signals: renewed ETF inflows, fresh corporate treasury purchases, and declining oil prices.

And guess what? On June 23, the first signal flickered. Spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded $39.2 million in net inflows—the first positive day after that prolonged bleeding streak. Strategy also purchased 520 BTC for approximately $35 million this week, and Strive Asset Management added 759 BTC at an average price near $65,850.

“There is genuine counterpoints to the gloom,” as one analysis put it. “Supply is changing hands, not leaving”.

The $700 Billion Elephant in the Room

Here’s the uncomfortable question nobody wants to answer: what if the AI rotation is structural, not temporary? The largest U.S. hyperscalers are expected to spend more than $700 billion on AI infrastructure this year. If capital keeps flowing there instead of back into crypto, the drag on Bitcoin demand could outlast previous downturns.

“Bitcoin currently trades below Strategy’s average cost of $75,699 and the market has begun to price the possibility of forced selling by leveraged corporate holders,” Laboure warned. “We expect this question to persist.”

Summary

Bitcoin’s crash below $60,000 represents a perfect storm of record ETF outflows, hawkish Fed signals, and a brutal capital rotation into AI investments. The controversy raging across social media pits Michael Saylor’s “AI did it” defense against critics who blame his own company’s symbolic BTC sale for triggering the collapse. While institutional investors flee at a historic pace and retail buyers have largely vanished, a handful of bulls—including Standard Chartered—insist this is the cycle bottom with 70% upside ahead. The truth probably lies somewhere in the middle, but one thing’s certain: the crypto king is bleeding, and the vultures are circling.