Bitcoin and Ethereum: Forecasting March After February’s Significant Losses

- In February 2025, both Bitcoin and Ethereum faced significant drops, making investors more anxious as they looked ahead to March.
- Historical trends show that March has often been a challenging month for Bitcoin and Ethereum.
February 2025 has proven to be a tough month for cryptocurrency markets, particularly for the two leading currencies: Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH). Both assets experienced declines that many investors have not seen in over a decade. As the situation continues to unfold, uncertainty casts a shadow over the future of these digital currencies.
With March approaching, traders and investors are left wondering whether these recent drops indicate the beginning of a prolonged downturn, or if there’s hope for a rebound.
Performance of Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH)
February 2025 has been marked by extreme volatility for both Bitcoin and Ethereum, leading to significant corrections in their prices.
Bitcoin began the month on a strong note, trading close to local highs. However, as the month progressed, it faced increasing downward pressure, ultimately dropping over 12%. Charting trends show these movements clearly.
Source: TradingView
In contrast, Ethereum experienced an even steeper decline, with a staggering drop of 38%. This widening gap between the two cryptocurrencies suggests a change in how investors feel about them, likely driven by concerns about liquidity and issues specific to different sectors.
While Bitcoin managed to find some support during this downturn, Ethereum’s sharp decline brings up questions about its strength in a challenging market.
Is March a Weak Month? Historical Context
Looking at past data, Bitcoin and Ethereum have historically struggled in March. Over the years, Bitcoin’s average return for this month is just 3.42%, with a median of 0.51%, suggesting many Marches are either flat or negative.
Ethereum has slightly better average returns, sitting at 8.22%, but its median of 1.80% shows inconsistency. Notably, Bitcoin saw declines in March during the years 2014, 2015, 2018, and 2020, while Ethereum faced losses in 2018 and 2022.
This backdrop of negative historical performance makes it reasonable for investors to approach March with caution, especially after Bitcoin’s 17.39% and Ethereum’s 31.95% declines in February 2025.
Can Bitcoin and Ethereum Recover in March?
As March begins, Bitcoin starts with fresh wounds from February, where it lost 17.39%, marking one of its worst monthly performances in a long time. Traditionally, March has also been unkind, with an average return of -0.39% and a median of 0.51%, indicating the potential for more losses.
Source: TradingView
From a technical view, Bitcoin struggles below its 50-day Simple Moving Average (SMA) of $97,570.68 and is close to its 200-day SMA of $82,231.19. The Relative Strength Index (RSI) sits at 36.85, indicating Bitcoin is still in a downward trend but has not become extremely oversold yet. A brief recovery might be visible around the $80,000 mark, yet the overall trend remains negative.
On the other hand, Ethereum performed even worse, suffering a 31.95% drop, its steepest in history. March statistics for Ethereum show an average return of 2.82%, yet the median return of 1.18% reveals instability.
Technically, Ethereum is also significantly under its 50-day SMA of $2,890.37 and its 200-day SMA of $2,926.03. The RSI at 37.82 indicates a slight recovery from oversold conditions, but the momentum is still weak. For Ethereum to escape its slump, it needs to reclaim the $2,500-$2,600 range and see increased buying activity; otherwise, any rebounds could be brief.
Investor Sentiment and Market Behavior
In times of market downturns, how investors react plays an important role in how prices move. Fear, uncertainty, and doubt (often called FUD) can lead to panic selling, which makes the declines even worse beyond what the fundamental conditions warrant.
When prices drop, individual investors often panic and sell, while large institutional investors might look for discounted opportunities. Currently, investor sentiment seems to be cautious but not extremely pessimistic. However, if broader economic issues persist, feelings could shift heavily towards pessimism, which could create chances for those looking to invest against the trend.