Bitcoin (BTC) price surged beyond $100,000 yesterday, propelled by multiple positive developments throughout the year. The flagship cryptocurrency’s ascent has led Standard Chartered to predict that BTC could double in price to $200,000 by the end of 2025.
Bitcoin Can Double In Price By 2025 End, Predicts Standard Chartered
Bitcoin, the top digital asset with a market cap of more than $2 trillion when writing, has finally entered the six-figure price territory. Reinvigorated by Donald Trump’s victory in the US presidential election, BTC has climbed a remarkable 48% since November 5.
In a note shared earlier today, Standard Chartered analyst Geoff Kendrick remarked that the firm’s BTC target by end of 2025 of around $200,000 is “achievable.” The analyst added:
We would turn even more bullish if BTC saw more rapid uptake by U.S. retirement funds, global sovereign wealth funds, or a potential US strategic reserve fund. In 2025, we expect institutional flows to continue at or above the 2024 pace. MicroStrategy is running ahead of its USD 42 billion three-year plan, so its purchases in 2025 should match or exceed its 2024 purchases.
ARK Invest CEO Cathie Wood had similar thoughts as she emphasized that despite Bitcoin hitting the $100,000 milestone, the digital asset is still in the “early innings.” In a post on X, Wood sounded optimistic about appointing pro-crypto Paul Atkins as the next Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) chief.
She also referenced US Federal Reserve (Fed) chairman Jerome Powell’s recent remark describing BTC as a virtual, digital version of gold. Wood compared gold’s total market cap to that of Bitcoin, saying:
At $2,700, gold is a ~$15 trillion market, compared to bitcoin at only ~$2 trillion. Even after breaking through $100,000, bitcoin still is in early innings. Indeed, ARK Invest believes that Bitcoin is a much bigger idea than gold.
The chart below from CoinMarketCap shows the top assets in the world ranked by total market cap. While gold reigns supreme with a market cap of almost $18 trillion, BTC is steadily catching up with the precious metal. Notably, BTC has already surpassed silver in market cap.
The Case For Further Gains In BTC
Although Bitcoin has had an impressive year in price action, many sidelined investors may believe they have missed the boat. However, data seems to suggest quite the opposite.
According to a recent report, retail investors have yet to fully join the ongoing crypto bull market, suggesting the current rally is largely led by institutional investors. BTC surpassing the $100,000 price level may spark some interest in retail investors to begin buying cryptocurrencies and further fuel the current market rally.
A recent analysis by CryptoQuant predicts that Bitcoin may top $146,000 in this cycle. BTC trades at $101,585 at press time, up 6.9% in the past 24 hours.
Featured Image from Unsplash.com, Charts from CoinMarketcap and TradingView.com
