Bitcoin could see further rise and rise to as high as $ 100,000 by mid-2022, according to Antoni Trenchev of cryptocurrency lender Nexo.
The world's largest cryptocurrency by market cap was trading at $ 46,170.43 as of 8:42 p.m. ET Monday, according to data from Coin Metrics.
"I believe [bitcoin's] it will hit $ 100,000 this year, probably halfway, "Trenchev, Nexo's co-founder and managing partner, told CNBC's" Street Signs Asia "on Monday. The company claims to be the world's largest lender in the digital world. The financial industry, according to its website. The company has issued more than $ 6 billion in credit and manages assets for more than 2.5 million users worldwide, it said.
Bitcoin has largely been a winner in the pandemic era, surging over 60% in 2021 despite falling far short of its record of around $ 69,000 earlier that year. By comparison, the S&P 500 was up nearly 27% over the same period, while the Dow and Nasdaq were up 18.73% and 21.39% on the year, respectively.
But not everyone is as optimistic as Trenchev.
Some experts have warned that bitcoin you can be prepared for a steep decline in the coming months. Carol Alexander, a finance professor at the University of Sussex, said she sees bitcoin sink as low as $ 10,000 in 2022, virtually erasing all of its gains in the past year and a half.
Persistent regulatory scrutiny about the sector and wild price swings It could also influence the outlook for bitcoin.
For his part, Trenchev said there were "two simple reasons" why he sees big gains in the future for bitcoin.
One is that institutions are "building their treasuries" and filling them with cryptocurrency, he said, without providing any examples. Companies like MicroStrategy and Square are among the well-known examples of companies that have purchased massive amounts of bitcoins.
Another reason is his prediction that "cheap money" is here to stay, which will be of great help to cryptocurrencies.
Your comments come despite expectations Federal Reserve could raise interest rates multiple times this year for the first time in the pandemic era as the US central bank seeks to combat inflation. The Fed was one of the major central banks that took unprecedented monetary easing measures in 2020 to keep financial markets afloat during the early days of the pandemic.
Admitting his "contrary" view of a long and relaxed monetary policy, Trenchev said that most people were probably "wrong" in their expectations of rate hikes from the Fed.
"I honestly think that as soon as we see a rate hike, there will be a drop in stocks and the bond market, and frankly, in recent years, we haven't seen a lot of political will to ... power through kind of correction in traditional financial markets, "he said.
- CNBC's Ryan Browne contributed to this report.
