Bitcoin’s April rally has captured the attention of observers both inside and outside crypto–land, with the price perched above $5,200 once again. Blockchain pioneers are confronting the pop, even if they have different views on what it means.
Vinny Lingham, who is at the helm of blockchain identity platform Civic, isn’t convinced that crypto winter is over and wouldn’t be surprised to watch the price retrace its former lows. Binance CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, meanwhile, is an unapologetic bitcoin bull who sees all of the signs that it’s onward and upward from here.
The blockchain leaders are on opposite sides of the bitcoin bull market spectrum. They each joined CNBC’s Crypto Trader Ran NeuNer to discuss what’s next for the bitcoin price.
Lingham: ‘Absolutely’ a Chance Bitcoin Price Could Dip to New Lows
Lingham, who maintained a conservative bitcoin price outlook throughout the bear market, isn’t tossing that winter coat just yet. The Civic chief is not convinced that crypto winter is over, saying he is waiting for the bitcoin price to hold a particular level before he’s ready to concede that the bears have lost control.
“I’m not buying any bounce right now that doesn’t go to around $6,200 and stays there for at least 24-48 hours as being the end of the bear market cycle.”
While Lingham is willing to suggest that the bitcoin price is near the bottom of the bear market cycle, it could have more bouncing to go. Historically, bitcoin hasn’t escaped a bear market until the price is two times higher than the bottom. Considering that the bitcoin price bottom of the current cycle is $3,100, the cryptocurrency will have the “all clear” when it holds $6,200.
“If you look at the historical charts, roughly 2x is when the sentiment has been shown to be changed. And then we’re in an upward momentum,” said Lingham.
Even the most bullish bitcoin price outlooks entertain the possibility that it could be one step forward, two steps back for BTC. Lingham isn’t alone.
“There’s absolutely a chance we could go below $3,000. I don’t think the bear market cycle is necessarily over,” said Lingham, pointing to the critical level of $6,200.
Otherwise, Lingham believes that the bitcoin price will be “stuck in purgatory” as it trades the narrow range of $5,700-$6,200 for a while.
Lingham, incidentally, is also a general partner at Multicoin Capital Management where their $100 million-plus fund includes a long position on Binance Coin (BNB). Speak of the devil.
CZ: ‘People Are Not Scared Away’
Changpeng Zhao, CEO of Binance, retains a more bullish bitcoin price forecast. | Source: REUTERS/Darrin Zammit Lupi
As the head of crypto exchange Binance, Changpeng Zhao, or CZ, sees the crypto market from a completely different vantage point. In fact, he’s been called the “most bullish person in the industry,” and there’s a reason for it. He said of the April bitcoin price pump:
“The fact that the price can go up so quickly means that there was a lot of money waiting to buy bitcoin and they were really fearing missing out, the FOMO mentality. So the fact that the price can go up so quickly means the money was ready which basically means that people still have a lot of confidence in this industry. It’s not like everyone is scared away.”
If you need more evidence that the bitcoin price is in a bull market, consider the anecdotal evidence. Binance orders are at an all-time high, stablecoin deposits are up, and new user registrations have “jumped.”
“Every piece of data we have is going up right now,” said CZ.
What does this say? pic.twitter.com/orwPPwegCt
— CZ Binance (@cz_binance) April 9, 2019
While CZ is hesitant to make a bitcoin price prediction, he’s willing to admit,
“I’m always bullish.”
