Bitcoin
has surged past a noteworthy $120,000 this week, a level not witnessed since reaching its
previous record high
of over $124,000 back on August 14th. This represents a significant upswing of 97% compared to its value a year ago, when it traded around $60,700.
According to John Haar, a managing director at Swan Bitcoin, several converging elements have contributed to Bitcoin’s recent upswing, as noted in a Sherwood News interview. These include fiscal uncertainties arising from the government shutdown, which highlights the appeal of alternative assets like Bitcoin and gold.
“Looking at the broader picture, with global debt at unprecedented levels and traditional currencies facing challenges, Bitcoin is increasingly regarded as a highly liquid and independent reserve asset. We are observing a transition from purely speculative trading to more deliberate strategic allocations, a trend we expect to drive prices beyond previous peaks,” Haar stated.
Market analysts are also expressing positive sentiment regarding Bitcoin’s future performance.
JPMorgan’s analysts foresee Bitcoin reaching $165,000 by the end of the year. They attribute this to the acceleration of what they term “the debasement trade,” fueled by retail investors actively purchasing both gold and Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs), as outlined in their recent analysis. The “debasement trade” encompasses a range of macroeconomic conditions, including “heightened geopolitical and policy unpredictability,” “decreasing faith in government-backed currencies within certain emerging economies,” and “consistently large government deficits across major industrialized nations,” the analysts explained.
Concurrently, Citi analysts have set a 12-month price objective of $181,000 for Bitcoin, as noted
in their report this week
. The same report also establishes a year-end target of $132,000.
Furthermore, Geoff Kendrick, the global head of digital asset research at Standard Chartered, suggests that the government shutdown will be a primary force driving Bitcoin toward a new all-time high.
“During the previous shutdown under the Trump administration (December 22, 2018, to January 25, 2019), Bitcoin’s position in the market was different, resulting in minimal impact. However, this year, Bitcoin has been trading in correlation with ‘US government risks,’ particularly as reflected by its relationship with the US treasury term premium,” he commented in a research note.
Bitcoin ETFs have collectively attracted inflows of $2.25 billion since the beginning of the week. BlackRock’s
iShares Bitcoin Trust
alone experienced inflows of $466.5 million on Thursday, according to
data from SoSoValue
.
Bloomberg’s Eric Balchunas
observed
in a post on X (formerly Twitter) that both IBIT and the SPDR Gold ETF ranked among the top 10 ETFs in terms of trading volume on Thursday, noting, “This is unusual; it appears everyone wants to participate in The Debaser Trade.”
Additional Bitcoin-related Updates:
-
MARA Holdings
, which holds the second-largest corporate Bitcoin reserve,
reported an increase
in its holdings to 52,850 Bitcoin. Furthermore, the company mined 736 Bitcoin in September, representing a 4% increase compared to the previous month. -
Riot Platforms
released
its September production statistics, indicating the mining of 445 Bitcoin, a decrease from the 477 Bitcoin produced in August, representing a 7% month-over-month reduction. -
Cango also
published
its September production report. The Bitcoin mining firm produced 616.6 Bitcoin during the month, a decrease from the 663.7 Bitcoin produced in August, a 7% month-over-month decline.