Analysts observing the cryptocurrency market have highlighted Bitcoin‘s stagnant price movement, attributing it to subdued momentum influenced by sluggish Bitcoin ETF flows post the ‘halving’ event and the successful launch of a new ETF. Despite this recent lull, Bernstein, a prominent brokerage firm, maintains optimism, projecting a target of $150,000 for Bitcoin by 2025, fueled by robust demand for ETF inflows.
Bernstein also perceives the current slowdown as a transient phase amidst the increasing integration of Bitcoin ETFs with private banking platforms and wealth advisors. Concurrently, the Bitcoin mining sector demonstrates resilience, with leading miners consolidating their market dominance.
In contrast, Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency, has seen a 42% year-to-date increase, albeit slightly trailing behind Bitcoin. Regulatory challenges persist, notably the SEC‘s hesitation towards approving an Ethereum ETF due to concerns regarding market correlations and security classifications. However, Bernstein regards these hurdles as temporary obstacles, foreseeing Ethereum’s growth trajectory, especially in Layer 2 solutions such as Arbitrum, Optimism, and Polygon.
Lido’s prominence in the Ethereum staking ecosystem presents high-beta opportunities, according to Bernstein, with anticipation for further expansion facilitated by the forthcoming Eigen layer launch.
Meanwhile, Solana emerges as a formidable Ethereum competitor, praised for its streamlined single-layer architecture, cost efficiency, and rapid transaction processing capabilities. Its increasing dominance in stablecoin transactions and partnerships with major payment entities like Visa and Shopify underscore its potential in mainstream and cross-border payments.
Bernstein’s recent update also underscores the rising appeal of decentralized finance (DeFi) and real-world asset tokenization within the digital assets portfolio. Investor interest shifts towards decentralized or on-chain exchanges like Uniswap, GMX, and Synthetix, amidst regulatory scrutiny on centralized exchanges.
Furthermore, institutional investors show growing interest in tokenized real-world assets, exemplified by major financial institutions like BlackRock and Templeton launching tokenized money market funds exceeding $700 million in assets. The total on-chain value of tokenized U.S. Treasuries stands at approximately $1.3 billion, facilitated by Chainlink’s data oracle and tokenization platform.
Bernstein’s portfolio expansion includes Ronin Blockchain, representing the crypto gaming sector through its flagship game Axie Infinity, boasting a monthly active user base of approximately 3 million.
Acting as a token index for direct exposure to the crypto market, Bernstein’s portfolio forecasts a tripling of the total crypto market cap to $7.5 trillion within the next 18-24 months. For equity investors seeking crypto exposure, Bernstein recommends stocks of Bitcoin miners and crypto trading platforms, including Riot Blockchain, CleanSpark, and Robinhood Markets.
