KEY POINTS
- VanEck is considered the first established ETF player in the industry after it filed for a spot Bitcoin ETC in 2017
- Its CEO explained how Bitcoin shares some similarities with gold
- Bitcoin was trading in the red zone at $42,284.24 in the early hours of Sunday
Jan van Eck, the CEO of VanEck – one of the first global investment companies to file for a spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) – has given a bullish prediction for Bitcoin, saying it will set a new all-time high next year.
While the hype surrounding the spot Bitcoin ETF applications is at an all-time high since the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) final deadline is just a few weeks away, Van Eck, in an interview, explained how the "king of crypto" got his attention and how it shares some similarities with gold.
VanEck was the first established ETF player in the industry, which filed for a spot Bitcoin ETC in 2017.
"[Bitcoin] is going to be an accompaniment to gold, I told people. That was in 2017... Bitcoin is up 10x now... I think Bitcoin is the obvious asset that is growing up in front of our eyes," Van Eck, who has first-hand knowledge of today's market, said.
Bitcoin has seen almost 170% increase in its value, but Van Eck believes there are still substantial gains the crypto asset will achieve. He predicts the crypto asset will hit new all-time highs in 2024, probably on the back of the Bitcoin halving event scheduled for April 2024.
"No, [the big gains are not over] because it's growing up. It's like a child that's growing up," Van Eck said. "You can argue about it being in a bubble but... It bubbled in 2017 but then it hit all-time highs in 2021, so nothing has ever been a bubble that then has outperformed itself. So I fully expect in this cycle – and you have this halving thing happening in April which is great technically for Bitcoin – I expect all-time highs in the next 12 months."
VanEck CEO @JanvanEck3 expects Bitcoin all-time-high in the next 12 months. “It’s an asset that’s growing up in front of our eyes.” Also some good notes on the spot Bitcoin ETF effort and macro cycle. pic.twitter.com/02qZOVBPyx
— Gabor Gurbacs (@gaborgurbacs) December 16, 2023
The executive also addressed concerns directly while acknowledging the crypto asset's strengths.
On JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon's criticism that Bitcoin is being used for criminal activities, Van Eck said, "Don't throw the first stone if you are associated with the bank or any other financial institution that's never been involved with criminals in one shape or the other. I will leave it with that."
The VanEck CEO also said he does not see another "internet store of value" that will surface and "leapfrog" Bitcoin.
The world's largest crypto asset by market capitalization was trading in the red zone at $42,284.24 as of 1:21 p.m. ET on Sunday, with the 24-hour trading volume up by 4.92% at $15,677,842,649. Bitcoin's latest price action represents a 0.70% decrease in value in the past 24 hours and a 3.56% loss over the last seven days.
Data from CoinMarketCap shows that Bitcoin's current circulating supply stands at 19,572,731 BTC, with a market cap of $827,437,616,135.
