Investment research firm Bernstein has predicted that bitcoin (BTC) could soar to $150,000 within the next two years.
According to a CNBC report, Bernstein analyst Gautam Chhugani said in a research note that BTC’s predicted surge would be due to optimism surrounding the spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF).
Chhugani revealed that Bernstein expects the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to approve one or more proposals for a spot Bitcoin ETF by the first quarter of 2024.
Currently, about eight to ten traditional finance giants, including the world’s largest asset manager, BlackRock, Cathie Wood’s Ark Invest, VanEck, Galaxy Digital, WisdomTree, and Fidelity Investments, have pending applications with the SEC.
The investment research company expects the ETF approval would lead to roughly 10% of BTC’s circulating supply going toward the exchange-traded products. Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust already holds around 3% of the leading digital asset’s available supply.
“You may not like Bitcoin as much as we do, but a dispassionate view of Bitcoin as a commodity suggests a turn of the cycle. A good idea is only as good as its timing – SEC approved ETFs by world’s top asset managers (BlackRock, Fidelity et al), seems imminent,” Chhugani said.
Furthermore, the Bernstein analyst stated that the upcoming Bitcoin halving event scheduled for April 2024 would wash out losing miners and pave the way for survivors to record massive gains.
During the Bitcoin halving event, miners’ rewards per block will be slashed by 50%. The mechanism is scheduled to occur every four years to reduce the amount of BTC produced daily, which could, in turn, increase the crypto asset’s value due to simple economic supply-demand laws.
Bitcoin’s estimated price for 2025 is about five times its current of over $35,000 and more than twice its all-time high of $69,000 from November 2021.
Since BTC hit the $35,000 mark, several industry participants have forecasted the cryptocurrency’s price target in the coming months. Prominent analyst Michael Van de Poppe recently predicted that BTC will rise to $50,000 before the April 2024 halving event.
While speculations abound, many factors, including regulatory changes, the spot Bitcoin ETF approval, and economic developments, could affect BTC’s next trajectory.
