E A R N

Today on May 11 2026, Bitcoin is trading around 81,200 dollars with total market cap near 2.78 trillion. These five years have been full of extreme highs and lows. Here is a clear year by year summary.
2021 was the peak of the bull run. Bitcoin climbed from about 29,000 early in the year to an all time high of 68,789 in November. Ethereum reached close to 4,900. The entire crypto market almost touched 3 trillion dollars.
Huge stimulus money from the pandemic drove the rally. DeFi protocols saw massive growth, NFTs like Bored Ape and CryptoPunks became mainstream, and big companies started buying Bitcoin. Tesla and MicroStrategy were notable, while El Salvador made Bitcoin legal tender. However, China banned mining and too much leverage caused problems toward the end of the year. The euphoria showed clear signs of fading.
2022 turned into a brutal bear market. Rising inflation, aggressive rate hikes from the Fed, and the Russia-Ukraine war created heavy pressure. Terra Luna collapsed in May, wiping out around 60 billion. FTX went bankrupt in November and shattered trust. Bitcoin dropped all the way to 15,599, a decline of nearly 78 percent from the top. Total market cap fell below 1 trillion. Countless projects failed and many investors suffered big losses. This period created strong holders who bought quietly at low prices.
2023 brought the start of recovery. Bitcoin rose from 16k to above 44k by the end of the year. BlackRock filed for a Bitcoin ETF, Ethereum completed the Shanghai upgrade, and the Ordinals protocol sparked new interest on Bitcoin. Market cap recovered to around 1.7 trillion. It felt like institutions were beginning to take crypto seriously.
2024 marked the shift to institutional dominance. The fourth Bitcoin halving happened in April. Spot Bitcoin ETFs were approved in January and attracted enormous inflows from BlackRock, Fidelity and others. Bitcoin broke through 73k and reached new highs. Ethereum ETFs also launched. Memecoins had strong runs and political support for crypto increased. Market cap climbed above 2.5 trillion.
2025 was mostly a consolidation year. Bitcoin traded between 65k and 110k for much of the time. Narratives around real world assets, AI and crypto, and tokenization continued to develop. Regulations became clearer in Europe and other regions. Ethereum upgrades helped reduce fees on layer 2 networks. Market cap moved between 2.2 and 3.1 trillion. Many altcoins still lagged but the overall infrastructure kept getting better.
Right now in 2026, Bitcoin sits near 81,200, Ethereum around 2,650, and total market cap is 2.78 trillion with Bitcoin dominance about 54 percent. ETF inflows remain steady, more companies are adding Bitcoin to their balance sheets, and technology development continues in scaling and interoperability.
There are still challenges such as macroeconomic uncertainty, lower retail participation than in 2021, and older projects that have not recovered. Even so, the market feels more mature with a higher base.
After following this for five years, here are the main lessons:
Cycles tend to repeat with similar patterns.
Fundamentals like scarcity and real adoption matter more than short term hype.
Risk management is the most important thing. Never invest money you cannot afford to lose.
Institutions have helped make crypto stronger and more accepted.
The best opportunities often come when sentiment is very negative.
Indonesia has significant long term potential with its young population and improving rules.
Overall we have progressed from pure retail speculation in 2021 to a multi trillion dollar global asset class. Crypto is maturing and it is still early in the bigger picture.
What has been your biggest takeaway from the last five years? Are you feeling bullish or cautious for the rest of 2026? Feel free to share your thoughts below.
Stay patient and keep learning.