Bitcoin has taken a beating.
The world’s most valuable cryptocurrency has lost almost 30% of its value since its January record. It’s now worth just over $1.5 trillion and Bitcoin’s price is hovering at $80,000.
Bitwise Chief Investment Officer Matt Hougan says that dip is just a blip before Bitcoin’s valuation thunders to between $10 trillion and $50 trillion.
“If it doesn’t, it’ll be a footnote in history, bouncing around below $150,000, supported only by a small cohort of libertarians, cypherpunks, and speculators,” Hougan wrote in a Monday note.
In short: “Bitcoin either matters globally or it doesn’t.”
Hougan made his prediction as Bitcoin, other cryptocurrencies and the broader world market are shaken by a combination of Donald Trump’s escalating trade wars, disappointing earnings, scandals, hacks, and the looming threat of a US recession.
National Bitcoin reserve
For crypto, Bitcoin tanking is particularly stark as Trump was seen as a champion of the industry before taking office. On the campaign trail, he promised to relax laws, end the Biden era’s crypto crackdown, and even to create a national Bitcoin reserve.
On Thursday, Trump signed an executive order to create a Bitcoin stockpile out of cryptocurrencies already seized by law enforcement agencies.
Traders offered a muted response, seemingly disappointed that Trump fell short of announcing a Bitcoin shopping spree. Bitcoin and the crypto market continued their descent over the weekend.
But to Hougan, the reaction misses the point. To him “the strategic reserve is a huge step forward.”
“The market’s disappointment is absurd,” Hougan wrote.
He noted that the executive order stated that the Treasury and Commerce secretaries “shall develop strategies” for buying Bitcoin for the stockpile.
“Note that it doesn’t say the secretaries ‘may’ or ‘can:’ it says ‘shall,’” Hougan wrote.
“Words like these are carefully chosen in official statements,” he added.
Crypto market movers
- Bitcoin is down 07% over the past 24 hours to trade at $81,665.
- Ethereum is down 8.4% to trade at $1,919.
What we’re reading
- XRP ($2.14) will tank in March, bettors say. Here’s what’s driving the price ― DL News
- Is the bull run on pause…or over? — Milk Road
- Burned Tokens Are Gone Forever, Right? For 70 Billion CRO ($0.08), Maybe Not ― Unchained
- Major Stock Indices Slip as Crypto Faces Macro Headwinds Despite Favorable Policy — Decrypt
- How North Korea used a bogus stock trading simulator to steal $1.4 billion from Bybit― DL News
Eric Johansson is DL News’ News Editor. Got a tip? Email at [email protected].
