VanEck CEO Predicts $300K Bitcoin as ETF Surpasses Gold, Fueling “Digital Gold” Narrative

Bitcoin’s continued ascent in the financial markets reached a new milestone this week as BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF surpassed its gold ETF in net assets, further supporting a “digital gold” narrative among investors.

VanEck CEO Jan Van Eck, in recent comments to CNBC, suggested that Bitcoin could reach a value of $300,000 if it captures half of gold’s $18 trillion market cap, projecting this price as a “reasonable base case” rather than a maximalist target.

Since gaining U.S. approval in January, Bitcoin exchange-traded funds have accumulated significant inflows, reaching a net asset value of $33 billion for BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) on Friday. This asset base now places IBIT just ahead of BlackRock’s gold ETF, a 20-year industry staple, as Bitcoin hit an all-time high of over $77,000. 

Van Eck attributed his $300,000 target to the increasing role of Bitcoin as a store of value and its rising institutional and retail demand. “Bitcoin as digital gold makes sense given current trends,” he said, while noting the potential bipartisan appeal of the asset, particularly following Donald Trump’s recent appearance at a Bitcoin convention.

Van Eck’s comments come as Bitcoin’s market value has risen sharply, recently surpassing Meta Platforms to become the ninth-largest global asset and approaching silver’s estimated market cap of $1.77 trillion. While Bitcoin saw a nearly 80% increase this year from around $43,000 to just under $77,000, traditional gold has also reached new highs, rising to $2,800 an ounce, an approximate 40% increase.

Despite this record performance, some market analysts have expressed caution about Bitcoin’s recent trading behavior. Bitcoin briefly peaked at $77,270 on Bitstamp, but observers noted unusual trading activity, describing it as “spoofing” — a tactic where large orders are placed and quickly withdrawn to influence price movement. This tactic, while banned in traditional markets, remains common in cryptocurrency trading and contributed to Bitcoin’s fluctuating price action over the past week. Analyst WhalePanda remarked on Bitcoin’s relative underperformance following the new high, citing unusual behavior that diverges from previous all-time high patterns.

Further evidence of institutional interest in Bitcoin emerged this week, with a single-day inflow of $293 million into U.S.-based Bitcoin ETFs on November 8, though this figure was down from the record $1 billion in flows seen the prior day. UK-based investment firm Farside Investors attributed these flows to growing investor confidence in Bitcoin’s potential as a long-term asset, especially with the advent of U.S.-approved spot Bitcoin ETFs.