Bitcoin (BTC), the world’s most popular digital currency, is set to crack $80 000 (R1.2 million) and hit a new high this year.
This is according to Finder.com’s latest Bitcoin Price Predictions report. Finder’s panel of 35 fintech and crypto-currency specialists believe BTC will peak at $81 680 on average in 2022, before dropping to $65 185 by the end of the year.
Martin Fröhler, CEO of crypto-currency platform Morpher, gave one of the most bullish end-of-2022 forecasts, saying “political uncertainty, inflation and an ever-increasing desire to own non-government-controlled assets will propel Bitcoin to new all-time highs”.
CoinJar CEO Asher Tan provides a more conservative prediction, saying BTC will peak at $60 000 before dropping slightly to $56 000 by the end of the year.
“There’s still plenty of uncertainty about the short-term Bitcoin outlook. Given the macro-economic headwinds, it would not surprise me to see Bitcoin spend the whole year bouncing around between $30 000 to $60 000 – the sort of conditions that are terrible for traders, but rewarding for accumulators with a multi-year timeframe,” he says.
Although the panel’s average forecast for the end of 2022 is significantly higher than the price of BTC at the time of writing ($39 400), it is 15% lower than the January prediction of $76 360.
Finder.com says Bitcoin’s lack of use cases beyond being a store of value may factor into why the panel is becoming less bullish on Bitcoin.
In fact, it notes, half of Finder’s panel, including Thomson Reuters technologist and futurist Joseph Raczynski, believe BTC will eventually be overtaken by a more advanced blockchain in terms of being the most popular crypto-currency.
“Bitcoin is a one trick pony. For now, it really only serves as another currency, akin to a dollar, euro, or pound. Other blockchains that serve a multitude of purposes will likely have a chance to take the throne,” Raczynski says.
According to Raczynski, this is likely to be Ethereum. “It can serve as money, but has created a platform to tokenise all assets and create a massive platform of the internet of value. This is far grander than BTC potentially.”
Longer-term forecasts for BTC have also been on the downtrend since October 2021, says Finder.com.
The panel predicts that by 2025, BTC will be worth $179 280, which is a 13% drop from the panel’s October prediction of $206 351, and a 7% drop from the January forecast of $192 800.
The panel’s price predictions for 2030 have also dropped since October. It now expects BTC will be worth $420 240 by the end of 2030, which is roughly 25% lower than the October forecast of $567 472.
University of Canberra senior lecturer John Hawkins is one of the most bearish on BTC's future, predicting the coin will be worth just $5 000 and $100 by the end of 2025 and 2030, respectively, as it loses out to Ethereum.
“As well as private crypto being replaced by CBDCs [central bank digital currencies], and a general collapse of the speculative bubble, I think Bitcoin will lose out to Ethereum, which has a stronger use case, especially if Ethereum ever converts to POS [point-of-sale] and so becomes more environmentally responsible.”
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