Ever since bitcoin came into existence in 2009, it has steadily increased in value, acceptance, and usage. Well, maybe “steady” isn’t quite the word, since there have definitely been ups and downs in this volatile space. But in 2009, investor Kristoffer Koch bought 5,000 bitcoins for $27. Doing the math, that made each bitcoin worth $0.0054. Today, even accounting for the dizzying highs at the end of 2017 where it was valued at just over $20,000, and the drops and jumps throughout 2018, a single bitcoin is worth over $4,000. Any way you look at that, it’s an unparalleled achievement.
Bitcoin enthusiasts are convinced it’s here to stay and will not only rally, but will exceed all previous highs while the bitcoin detractors keep trying to determine the date it will disappear for good as they chant, “I told you so!”
NASDAQ’s plans to launch Bitcoin futures in the first half of 2019, along with increased interest and acceptance by institutional players, has helped buoy the bullish predictions.
Here are some of the bitcoin predictions for 2019 from industry experts:
John McAfee, eccentric cryptocurrency guru, tech pioneer and founder of McAfee Associates stands by his prediction that bitcoin will reach $1 million by 2020.
Michael Novogratz, CEO of investment firm Galaxy Digital, predicted that BTC would break $10k by the end of the first quarter of 2019. And as he told Financial Times in a November 2018 interview, he thinks it will go back to new highs.
Sonny Singh, Chief Commercial Officer of Bitpay, sees BTC back to $20,000 by the end of 2019 and further predicts that it will not drop below $15k after that.
Jeff Gundlach of DoubleLine Capital sees bitcoin going to $5,000, as he mentioned in a webcast on January 8, 2019, although he doesn’t recommend it for the faint of heart.
Ronnie Moas, cryptocurrency analyst is still bullish, sees bitcoin reaching $28,000 in 2019.
Fran Strajnar, CEO of Brave New Coin, a crypto research firm, believes bitcoin should reach $200,000 by January 1, 2020 at the latest.
Bobby Lee, CEO of China’s first exchange sees BTC dropping to $2,500 in January 2019 but then rallying to $333,000 by December 2021.
Anthony Pompliano, head of Morgan Creek Digital Assets, sees bitcoin remaining low for the first half of 2019, but he predicts it could eventually soar to $50,000 or higher, but nobody knows when that could happen.
Mike Kayamori, CEO of Japanese exchange Quoine, predicts that bitcoin is near its bottom and will “surpass” its all-time highs by the end of 2019.
Tyler Winklevoss, co-founder of the cryptocurrency exchange Gemini, doesn’t specify a dollar amount but says “Our thesis around bitcoin’s upside remains unchanged. We believe bitcoin is better at being gold than gold. If we’re right, then over time the market cap of bitcoin will surpass the ~7 trillion dollar market cap of gold.”
What are your thoughts on the future of bitcoin?