Do you remember that 312 crash that plunged the entire crypto market into despair? Recently, someone brought up this chapter of the past again, so I decided to sort out what happened back then once more. Honestly, that disaster really was terrifying.

The 312 incident happened in March 2020. Signals were already showing up in the days beforehand. On March 8, Bitcoin fell from 9200 to 8300, a drop of nearly 10%; Ethereum was smashed straight from 250 down to 210, a decline of 16%. Altcoins were even worse—many were cut straight in half. At the time, everyone thought it was about as close to a bottom as it would get, so they rushed in to buy the dip—this was the first wave of catchers.

Unexpectedly, on March 9, another wave hit. Bitcoin kept sliding from 8300 to 7700, and Ethereum dropped from 210 to 190. Two straight days of declines, and many people already felt that most of the risk had been released. Then, once again, some started buying the dip—this time, there were even more people entering the market.

The key was March 10 to 11: the market didn’t keep crashing. Instead, it churned and washed out traders through volatility. Bullish sentiment gradually returned, with people believing the market had bottomed and was set to rebound. So they made massive additions and bought in heavily. These two days gave everyone a false sense of safety—planting the seeds for the true catastrophe of 312.

Then came March 12. Bitcoin was smashed from 8000 straight down to 5500, a single-day drop of 31%. Ethereum fell from 200 to 120, a decline of 40%. You can imagine how outrageous the altcoin drops were—losses of several times or even ten times were everywhere. That day, almost no cryptocurrencies were spared. And that’s how the name “312” was born.

At the time, the level of mental collapse was hard to imagine. A small number of people still fantasized about the bottom. Some people began borrowing money and taking loans, thinking they could go long and get back to even—but most people were already completely resigned. All you could hear was stuff like “the crypto market is over” and “Bitcoin is going to zero.” Futures traders had it even worse: whether long or short, everything got liquidated. Strangely, it even gave a feeling of relief.

Things got even crazier on March 13. After Bitcoin rebounded to 6200, it was smashed again to 3800, a drop of 38.7%. Ethereum bounced to 145 and then fell to 89, down 38.6%. By this point, more than 90% of people in the crypto space had basically already broken down mentally. Everyone seemed lighter and almost carefree—because there wasn’t really anything left to lose.

Looking back on the history of 312, what’s most terrifying isn’t the magnitude of the drop itself, but that kind of psychological torment—over and over again. One round after another of buying the dip, one round after another of hope, and finally one round after another of despair. When you look back at the participants of 312, some people learned lessons and made it to today, while others left the crypto world for good. No matter what, 312 is an ever-lasting scar in the hearts of everyone who went through it. Time will blur everything, but that feeling will never disappear.