Analyst: Bitcoin is no longer a 'Tulip Mania' asset, its resilience in 2017 and subsequent cycles prove its uniqueness

BlockBeats News, December 7th, Bloomberg's Senior ETF Analyst Eric Balchunas wrote that, despite Bitcoin's recent sharp correction, comparing it to the 17th-century "Tulip Mania" is not appropriate. He pointed out that the tulip mania lasted only about three years, was completely eliminated after a collapse, whereas Bitcoin has experienced 6-7 rounds of sharp declines, set multiple historical highs, and has survived for the past 17 years.

Bitcoin has continued to rise by about 250% in the past three years and surged 122% last year. The current decline is more like a "retracement of last year's excessive rise." Even if it remains flat or slightly falls for the whole year in 2025, its long-term average annualized return is still around 50%.

Eric emphasized that the only common point between Bitcoin and tulips is "non-productive assets." However, gold, Picasso paintings, rare stamps, and other non-productive assets have long been seen as valuable assets. The tulip mania was a typical "one-time frenzy + collapse" structure, while Bitcoin is clearly in a completely different asset category.