Since 2016, Bitcoin (BTC) has experienced three super bull markets. Interestingly, before each major upward wave, Web3 typically experiences a large-scale project collapse, exchange hack, or systemic deleveraging. In the Chinese-speaking world, this is often referred to as a "sacrifice before the bull market," while in traditional finance it's closer to the "Lehman Brothers moment." Aligning the timelines, these three cycles can be roughly summarized as follows: 1⃣ 2016 Security Crisis → 2017 Super Bull Market In June 2016, The DAO was attacked, and approximately 3.6 million ETH were transferred. This incident nearly shook the entire Ethereum ecosystem, ultimately leading to a hard fork that resulted in today's ETH and ETC. Two months later, Bitfinex was hacked, losing approximately 119,756 BTC. BTC fell by about 20% that day, and the market began to worry about the ability of large exchanges to protect user assets. But the market didn't end after compensation and risk mitigation were completed. In 2017, BTC surged from around $1,000 at the beginning of the year to nearly $20,000, ushering in the first true bull market for ICOs, ETH, and numerous altcoins. What was "sacrificed" before this bull market was the early security of smart contracts and exchange custody systems. 2. Industry consolidation from 2018 to 2020 → The super bull market of 2020 to 2021 The 2017 bull market left behind a large number of ICOs, Ponzi schemes, and projects lacking real products. Following the bursting of the bubble, the market entered a liquidation phase lasting over two years: • January 2018: Coincheck suffered a theft of approximately $530 million worth of NEM. • BitConnect's Ponzi scheme collapsed. • 2019: QuadrigaCX faced a massive funding gap due to the death of its founder. • PlusToken involved billions of dollars in crypto assets. • 2019: Binance's hot wallet was hacked, with approximately 7,000 BTC stolen. • March 12, 2020: BTC briefly fell to around $4,000. This round didn't involve a single "Lehman moment," but rather a two-year cleanup of the ICO bubble, Ponzi schemes, and low-quality projects left over from 2017. BTC bottomed out at around $3,200 at the end of 2018, and experienced another extreme liquidity shock in March 2020. Subsequently, DeFi, stablecoins, institutional funds, and global loose liquidity jointly launched a new cycle. BTC entered its main upward trend in the second half of 2020, reaching approximately $69,000 in November 2021. The projects sacrificed before this bull market were the ICO bubble, Ponzi schemes, and projects lacking cash flow. 3⃣ The 2022 Chain Reaction Crash → The 2023-2025 Super Bull Market 2022 was the year in Web3 history closest to a traditional financial "Lehman Brothers moment." This wasn't a single project failure, but a complete chain of credit contagion: • UST de-pegged, LUNA neared zero • 3AC, a subsidiary of Three Arrows Capital, became insolvent • Lending platforms like Celsius and Voyager collapsed • Multiple institutions faced funding gaps due to inter-bank lending • In November 2022, FTX collapsed and filed for bankruptcy • BTC fell to approximately $15,500 LUNA breached the credibility of algorithmic stablecoins, 3AC breached institutional credit, Celsius breached centralized lending, and FTX breached user trust in exchanges. This was the true "Lehman moment" for Web3, preceding the super bull market of 2023-2025. After completing systemic deleveraging, BTC began to recover in 2023; a Bitcoin spot ETF was approved in 2024, followed by the fourth halving. Institutional funds, ETFs, stablecoins, RWA, and a clearer regulatory framework have collectively driven this new bull market. BTC rose from approximately $15,500 at the end of 2022 to over $126,000 in October 2025, representing a price increase of approximately 8.1 times its low. The sacrifices made before this bull market were highly leveraged institutions, unsecured lending, algorithmic stablecoins, and platforms that misappropriated user assets. IV. 2026: The Sacrifice Before the Next Bull Market? The 2023-2025 bull market peaked after BTC broke through $126,000. As of October 2026, BTC had fallen back to approximately $79,000, a retracement of approximately 37% from its peak. The risks accumulated from overvaluation, high leverage, and the late stages of a bull market are being repriced. If deleveraging is completed, liquidity bottoms out, and new funds reappear, then this round of liquidation in 2026 may be the "sacrifice period" before the next super bull market.