- The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved 11 bitcoin ETFs this week.
- The cryptocurrency has risen 70% since October, and bulls believe the watchdog’s announcement could push it higher.
- Many expect the price of Bitcoin to exceed six figures by the end of 2024.
After months of speculation, the Securities and Exchange Commission finally gave its stamp of approval to 11 bitcoin exchange-traded funds on Wednesday — and crypto bulls have identified the regulator’s move as a potential catalyst to push its price above six figures for the first time.
UK’s Standard Chartered Bank and Tom Lee of Fundstrat perma-bull are among the names charting a course for Bitcoin to surpass $100,000 in the run-up to the SEC’s announcement, while other analysts described January 10 as a “watershed moment” and a “game… “. Modulator “encryption”.
The market reaction has been weak so far, with the large-cap token rising less than 1% on Thursday – but this may be a classic case of investors “buying the rumor, selling the news.” Bitcoin has jumped 70% since late October as chatter surrounding the SEC’s decision began to intensify, and it is currently trading at its highest price in nearly two years.
It still has to double again to reach $100,000 – but some believe the milestone could be reached by the end of 2024, with regulated spot ETFs potentially attracting big-name institutional investors into the cryptocurrency space.
Six-figure price targets
Standard Chartered is a high-profile company that is particularly bullish on Bitcoin. Earlier this month, strategists at the bank forecast that spot ETFs could generate between $50 billion and $100 billion in inflows into the token this year — setting a price target of $200,000 by the end of 2025.
Meanwhile, Fundstrat’s Lee said in an interview with CNBC on the day the SEC announced its decision that he expects the token to rise to between $100,000 and $150,000 over the next 12 months — and to rise to $500,000 over the years. The next five.
“There is a limited supply, and now we have a potentially huge surge in demand through instant Bitcoin (ETF) approval — so I think within five years, close to half a million dollars will be possible,” Lee told the outlet.
Carol Alexander, an economist at the University of Sussex, who successfully described Bitcoin’s decline in 2022 and its surprising comeback last year, doesn’t set her sights too high — but she still expects the cryptocurrency to be between $70,000 and $100,000 at the end of December. .
“I think it’s excellent for the short-term Bitcoin bulls — I’ve never been this bullish before,” she told Business Insider in an interview on Wednesday.
Words of caution
However, not all of the financial world is convinced by these lofty price targets.
Mohamed El-Erian, former CEO of PIMCO, said in an interview Share on X On Thursday, although the SEC’s approval could be a “game changer” for cryptocurrencies, it is unlikely to boost broader use of bitcoin.
“While all of these factors are prominent in establishing cryptocurrencies in the investment world, they do not significantly enhance its role as a potential global currency,” he wrote. “The expectations here are still more restrictive.”
Even the SEC itself seems skeptical about Bitcoin’s potential as an investment. In a separate statement on Wednesday, President Gary Gensler described the token as “primarily a speculative and volatile asset that is also used for illicit activity including ransomware, money laundering, sanctions evasion, and terrorist financing.”