KEY POINTS
- The analysts pointed to a significant activity in GBTC, which logged its first inflow in months
- They say current metrics suggest 'a healthy cycle,' which began some 3 weeks after the halving
- Matt Hougan and Mark Yusko had similar Bitcoin price predictions last month
Despite Bitcoin's price rollercoaster since its halving event last month, analysts at research firm Bernstein maintain their earlier prediction that the world's top digital asset will hit $150,000 at the end of next year.
Bitcoin went downhill after its halving – wherein BTC mining rewards were cut in half to reduce the digital currency's market circulation – and had a pretty bad run last week as the asset dropped well below $60,000 from a stellar $73,000 all-time high in March.
However, Bernstein analysts Gautam Chhugani and Mahika Sapra believe Bitcoin "is far from done." In fact, they "feel even better" about their earlier prediction that the coin will hit $150,000 by the end of 2025, as per a Monday note seen by The Block. According to them, "metrics indicate a healthy cycle, still in its early stages."
They went on to highlight the reversing course of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) wherein Grayscale's unpopular Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) finally logged its first inflow in 11 weeks after nearly 80 days of consecutive outflows. "This is significant considering GBTC has been a source of significant and continued selling, which the new 9 ETFs have had to absorb," they pointed out.
Their reaffirmation came on the day BTC hit $64,000 after the digital coin saw a low of $58,000 last week. At the time, Bitcoiners remained bullish that the asset was just going through a price correction after the halving and will soon see an uptick.
Chhugani and Sapra aren't the only industry experts who believe Bitcoin is not done climbing as there were others who previously predicted similar price upticks for the world's first decentralized digital asset.
Matt Hougan, CIO of Bitwise Investments, the world's largest crypto index fund manager, wrote last month that he sees Bitcoin passing $250,000 sometime within the next four years – roughly before the next halving which is expected in 2028. He is also expecting BTC volatility to drop by 50% as supported by the financial market's gradual embrace of spot BTC ETFs.
Also last month, prominent hedge fund manager Mark Yusko said Bitcoin can possibly reach $150,000 by the end of 2024. "Post-halving, you get a lot of interest in the asset, a lot of people FOMO [a financial term that refers to investors experiencing a "fear of missing out" on products or offerings that have much buzz around them] in, and we normally go to about two-times fair value in the cycle," he said at the time.
As of Monday night, Bitcoin prices were trading at around $63,000.
