Controversial financial commentator Peter Schiff has predicted that the cryptocurrency sector is on track to enter a full-blown "ice age."
The gold bug argues that there will not be another "crypto spring," meaning that the term "crypto winter" will not be appropriate for describing the upcoming market crash.
Cryptocurrency sell-off
Schiff's dire warning comes amid a massive cryptocurrency sell-off that is taking place right now.
Bitcoin, the leading coin, is down by 4% over the past 24 hours, according to CoinGecko data.
Altcoins are unsurprisingly performing way worse, with Ethereum (ETH) shedding as much as 8%. The flagship altcoin has now plunged by as much as 20% within just a single week.
Earlier today, Schiff gloated over Ethereum's plunge below the $4,000 level.
Solana (SOL) and Dogecoin (DOGE) have also nose-dived by nearly 10%.
Overall, $1.04 billion worth of crypto has already been liquidated over the past 24 hours.
It is worth noting that major equity indices are also on track to close in the red for the third consecutive day. The most recent bout of weakness was caused by stronger-than-expected GDP growth as well as a decline in jobless claims. The odds of the Federal Reserve implementing several rate cuts this year have dropped substantially following the recent economic data. This, of course, also affects risk assets of the likes of Bitcoin despite the fact that the cryptocurrency recently became less correlated with US equities.
Bearish Strategy warning
While commenting on the recent market correction, Schiff said that he was not sure whether or not Strategy (MSTR) would be able to survive, noting that the company's shares have plunged by 45% from their peak.
"This is going to be a brutal bear market for Bitcoin Treasury companies," Schiff said.
Dan Burgin
Vladislav Sopov
U.Today Editorial Team