Analysts predict the Bitcoin (BTC) market cap will reach $1.5 trillion amid surges in spot exchange-traded funds (ETF) from BlackRock and others and the trade volume of the top 10 crypto assets. Jurrien Timmer from Fidelity predicts that Bitcoin will soon capture 25% of the non-industrial gold market.
Institutions and analysts have turned bullish that surges in XRP, ETH, and BTC, coupled with ETF-fueled interest from institutions, will see the crypto market increase its capitalization by at least $500 billion.
This week, Elon Musk implicitly endorsed Bitcoin as a true currency in response to a 2016 statement from Warren Buffett. Buffett said in 2016 that time, not money, was useful for him.
Musk replied with ‘time is currency,’ echoing reflections from an anonymous writer, Gigi, who said that Bitcoin block height is a time measurement. Musk’s tweet comes amid feverish speculation about the future of Bitcoin. Recent surges in XRP, ETH, and BTC prices have increased cryptocurrency market capitalization to over $2 trillion.
“Today, it is again a timekeeping device that is transforming our civilization. a clock, not computers, is the true key-machine of the modern informational age. And this clock is Bitcoin,” Gigi wrote.
Read more: What Is Market Capitalization? Why Is It Important in Crypto?
Renowned analyst Kevin Svenson said that Bitcoin could double based on how closely its price has tracked a recent trendline. Svenson noted via on-chain analysis that Bitcoin’s price will double a so-called ‘Base 3’ value according to parabolic crypto trading patterns seen in every cycle. Earlier this year, the asset’s price reached $45,000 at Base 3, which means a $90,000 price is possible.
Institutions that steered clear of Bitcoin are now embracing it, some at arm’s length. JPMorgan, whose CEO called Bitcoin a pet rock, recently upgraded the stock of US crypto exchange Coinbase to neutral, arguing that Bitcoin’s rally after the US Securities and Exchange Commission approved spot ETFs has proven sustainable. Jurrien Timmer, Director of Global Macro at Fidelity Investments, recently offered a bullish take on Bitcoin’s taking the market share of so-called monetary gold, i.e., gold that is not used in jewelry or manufacturing.
“Based on the calculations outlined in my previous threads, I estimate that Bitcoin will eventually capture around a quarter of the monetary gold market. At 40%, monetary gold is currently worth around $6 trillion, while Bitcoin is worth $1 trillion,” Timmer said.
Investment advisory firm Carson Group recently onboarded four of the 10 Bitcoin ETFs, including Fidelity’s. Bitcoin ETFs from Fidelity and BlackRock have been the largest, with BlackRock’s becoming the fifth-largest ETF among all asset classes.
Read more: What Is a Bitcoin ETF?
But Buffett, one of the world’s most famous and successful investors, is still unconvinced. Last year, he told investors at a Berkshire Hathaway shareholder meeting that Bitcoin had zero value.
His comments were similar to those in a recent critique from the European Union. They said in a recent release that Bitcoin cannot generate cash flow, nor can investors view it as a commodity. BeInCrypto asked Berkshire Hathaway for their perspective on Bitcoin but had not heard back at press time.