"The Fear & Greed Index measures market emotion on a 0-100 scale. At 5, it shows that nearly everyone is panicking-refelcting the kind of widespread capitulation that has historically marked major bottoms. But that doesn't mean the bottom is in. The index flags when fear is extreme, but doesn't tell when the reversal starts. But every time the Bitcoin Fear & Greed index dropped to these levels, a major rally eventually followed-although recoveries usually took months."
"When FTX imploded, the Bitcoin price fell to roughly $15,500 and the Fear & Greed Index dropped to 12. Recovery was slow as Bitcoin traded sideways for months before climbing back to $40,000 by late 2023, marking a 150% gain from the lows. The extreme fear did mark the cycle bottom, but investors who bought had to wait nearly a year to see meaningful returns."
The Bitcoin Fear & Greed Index fell to 5 on February 6, 2026, the lowest reading on record and signaling extreme market panic. Previous readings at comparable lows in 2018, 2020, and 2022 eventually preceded rallies ranging from 150% to 1,400%, but recoveries often unfolded over months to years. The index measures sentiment on a 0-100 scale and indicates widespread capitulation at such lows, yet it does not predict the timing of reversals. Historical cases show varied recovery shapes: a slow recovery after FTX in 2022 and a rapid V-shaped rebound after the March 2020 COVID crash.
Read at 24/7 Wall St.
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