The price of bitcoin is back below $4,000.

Following a period of record highs, average prices across global exchanges declined at the start of trading on August 22, having already dipped more than $150 already from the day's open. At press time, bitcoin was trading at $3,894, its lowest total observed since April 15, when the price hit a low of $3,892.

However, despite the continued show of strength from the market, some traders indicated a belief that bitcoin's rally – which has catapulted the digital asset to 350 percent gains this year – might be reaching its peak.

BTC VIX, organizer of the cryptocurrency trading group Whale Club, remarked that he is losing confidence in the rally. In particular, he cited the fact that bitcoin prices have dipped below $4,000 four times since first surpassing the milestone, a sign he thinks the market isn't keen to push the price higher in the short term.

"The bulls are tired," he told CoinDesk.

Elsewhere, market observers predicted that bitcoin might stabilize around the $4,000 mark.

Such a view was put forth by Mike Kayamori, CEO of Japan-based bitcoin exchange Quoine, who saw the dip below $4,000 as a sign of consolidation, if not a cause for alarm.

Like many analysts, he appears to believe bitcoin is likely to trade in range ahead of possible changes to its underlying technology, though these won't come for some time.

"[The market] could go lower, but the next big date will be the Segwit2x in November," he concluded.

Barometer image via Shutterstock