Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) may have already exited its "winter phase," according to industry experts, who argue it will not dive lower than lows set earlier this year.

Bitcoin Structure Materially Stronger

In an interview with Milk Road Show, Matt Hougan and Ryan Rasmussen said that crypto has not suddenly become risk-free.

Instead, market structure underneath Bitcoin is becoming materially stronger even while macro uncertainty, geopolitical tensions and regulatory delays continue weighing on sentiment.

"I think we can have relatively high confidence that $60,000 was a really fundamental bottom," Hougan said.

The executives pointed to several long-term trends continuing to strengthen underneath the surface like institutional crypto allocations, stablecoin adoption, tokenization, DeFi infrastructure, AI and digital payment expansion.

Hougan also said the conversation around Bitcoin allocations has shifted materially over the last year. Major financial firms are now openly discussing crypto allocations between 2% and 7%, compared to 1% in earlier cycles.

Stablecoin Adoption Biggest Catalyst

Hougan highlighted recent developments as major signals crypto rails are entering real-world payment infrastructure:

  • Meta plans to pay creators globally using USDC (CRYPTO: USDC) on Solana (CRYPTO: SOL) and Polygon (CRYPTO: POL)
  • DoorDash is exploring stablecoin payouts for international gig workers

Hougan argued these integrations provide a blueprint for how crypto transitions from speculative trading into everyday financial infrastructure.

Regulation And Hacks Remain Key Risks

Despite the bullish long-term outlook, Bitwise said several major risks could still slow the rally.

Rasmussen said failure to pass U.S. crypto legislation would likely create a short-term setback but not destroy the broader crypto adoption trend.

Hougan added that continued security breaches across crypto infrastructure remain an important concern for institutional investors.

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