Key Takeaways
-
Bitcoin’s Christmas Eve price history highlights extreme volatility.
-
2017 marked Bitcoin’s first true mainstream breakout — and its risks.
-
Analysts believe that holiday trading rarely changes the broader trend of Bitcoin.
A year-by-year look at Bitcoin’s price on the day before Christmas highlights how one particular holiday year, nearly a decade ago, reshaped investors’ perceptions — and set the stage for Bitcoin’s massive growth.
Below are the approximate prices of Bitcoin recorded on Christmas Eve every year since early adoption began:
Bitcoin’s Christmas price spike in 2017 marked the asset’s first major breakout.
At the beginning of the year traded below $ 1,000 and exceeded more than $ 16,000 by the end of December, Bitcoin extended what at the time was a record rally.
According to on-chain data, Bitcoin reached an intraday high of $16,663.18 in mid-December, gaining more than 50% in one week.
The earnings drew a significant boost from critics at the time who warned that Bitcoin’s rise showed the hallmarks of a speculative bubble.
Back then, many people made comparisons with the dotcom boom and warned that prices could turn quickly.
This prediction, unfortunately, turned out to be partially true, as prices fell by 80% in the following year.
With more than ten Christmas Eves shaping the price of Bitcoin, market participants believe that the long-term trajectory of Bitcoin remains intact, despite the near-term fluctuations.
Coinbase Global CEO Brian Armstrong recently predicted that Bitcoin could reach a seven-figure price in the next five years, echoing the views of similarly bullish industry heads.
For Bitcoin to trade at $1 million by 2030, it would need to deliver compound annual growth of around 50%.
Although Bitcoin suffered significant losses in 2018, it also posted substantial gains in many other years.
Whether that record can be repeated is still uncertain, but the long-term view of the industry remains bullish.
In 2025, technical analysts suggest that the recent weakness of Bitcoin may persist beyond the holiday period.
Valdrin Tahiri, an analyst at CCN, said seasonal trading patterns offer little support for a near-term reversal.
“Bitcoin’s Christmas performance has been consistent for years,” he wrote, noting that holiday trading rarely changed the broader market trend.