Bitcoin Is Showing Signs of a Bottom, James Check Says, Calling This a Good Time to Accumulate

James Check is the founder of onchain research firm Checkonchain and a former lead analyst at Glassnode. He has long used technical analysis and onchain cost-basis models to assess market cycles. After Bitcoin retreated from its 2025 high, the market has been debating whether the decline marks a continuing bear market or a bottoming phase in which holdings are changing hands and risk is receding.

On February 24, 2026, Check said mean-reversion models had entered bottoming territory. Bitcoin had fallen below $63,000, approaching its February 5 low of about $60,000. He said prices could still fall further, but the main test would be several months of “time pain.” In 2022, the market initially formed a bottom near $17,600 before dropping to about $15,600 after FTX collapsed. He views the current stage as a time to accumulate gradually.