$20,000 Bitcoin Floated… Again
Researchers at Canaccord Genuity Capital Markets, a Vancouver, Canada-based financial institution, recently released a research note regarding Bitcoin (BTC) and the cryptocurrency market. Interestingly, they were slightly bullish. Or by some other measures, they were rather optimistic — too optimistic even. Per MarketWatch, who broke down the report, “HODLers […] could be set for a change in [their] fortunes.”
Analysts Michael Graham and Scott Suh explained that if BTC were to follow the price action it underwent from 2011 to 2017, a clear argument could be made that the cryptocurrency is bottoming as we speak. Funnily enough, they aren’t the first to have made such a call. Justin Sun of Tron, for instance, recently noted that Bitcoin may range from $3,000 to $5,000 for much of 2019, but more likely than not, the cryptocurrency will not see lower lows. Sun isn’t the only industry insider to have made such comments.
Fred Wilson, the co-founder of Union Square Ventures, took to his popular personal blog at the start of 2019 to explain that this year will see a number of “bullish runs, followed by selling pressures” will bless cryptocurrencies with their presence. The selling pressures, he explained, could potentially bring BTC to retest its year-to-date low at $3,150.
From here, Graham and Suh expect for Bitcoin to rally into and through 2020’s halving, and could post near consistent gains until it reaches $20,000 in March 2021.
Fundamentals Catalyst To Push BTC?
While they argued that the technicals, or historicals more accurately, are signaling for a rally in the coming months, fundamentals are arguably just as important. Price may have deviated drastically from industry developments, as explained by Pantera Capital’s Dan Morehead, but such trends are still important to keep an eye on. The two aforementioned analysts from Canaccord wrote:
“We point to several tangible catalysts that could propel the price of bitcoin in 2019. For one, institutional custody solutions are expected to launch in the first half of 2019, led by Fidelity Digital Assets.”
It has been argued that the impending launch of Fidelity Investments’ cryptocurrency division could spark the arrival of the so-called “institutional herd,” there is a lot else going for Bitcoin and the broader ecosystem too. Here are the developments in no particular order:
- The Ohio-based Kroger has revealed that it will be dropping Visa credit cards. Anthony Pompliano of Morgan Creek reached out, and began to discuss with a product manager at the company about the potential integration of Lightning Network.
- More definitively, reliable sources tell The Block that Starbucks received a large stake in Bakkt in exchange for accepting BTC transactions in stores the world over.
- Samsung, one of the world’s largest technology giants, has revealed that its Galaxy S10 product will offer a cryptocurrency wallet that is consumer-facing.
Although these are all well and good, will they end up pushing the value of BTC higher? For now, no one is all too sure, as the market remains irrational.
Title Image Courtesy of Patrick Tomasso Via Unsplash
