Bitcoin (BTC). In just over a decade, this leading cryptocurrency has gained a cult-like following. While there’s still some way to go until decentralised currencies are fully integrated into the mainstream, bitcoin has become the most widely known and widely accepted crypto coin.
The popularity of BTC is such that consumers without even the slightest interest in the cryptocurrency industry can name at least one-use case of the asset. Since the mid-2010s, bitcoin applications have been considerable, with the coin affecting everything from the gaming and casino industries to retail and even identity management. For example, plenty of consumers worldwide are eager to try out bitcoin pokies or play a crypto video game purely because of the novelty.
In tandem with its rising popularity among consumers, Satoshi Nakamoto’s ground-breaking coin has also undergone meteoric rises in value, as well as subsequent falls. Having hit an all-time high of $68,566.83 in November 2021, BTC’s price then suffered during the crypto crash of 2022. Now, with 2023 well underway, the price of the leading cryptocurrency is starting to climb again, prompting many analysts to speculate on a possible $1 million value before the decade comes to a close.
In this article, we’ll take a closer look at Bitcoin’s fluctuating value over the past few years, as well as discuss the key factors contributing to a potential price surge.
The Rise(s) and Fall(s) of Bitcoin
The period between the first “Bitcoin Boom” of 2017 to the subsequent crypto crash in the winter of 2022 bore witness to a number of dramatic ups and downs in the value of the decentralised currency.
Bitcoin first soared to unprecedented heights in late 2017, when it reached a then record-high value of almost $20,000 in December of that year. Several factors contributed to this surge, including increased media coverage, institutional adoption and retail investor FOMO (fear of missing out). Following that bull run, however, the market was on course to correct, but analysts weren’t prepared for just how low the price of BTC would actually plummet.
The correction saw Bitcoin sink by over 80%, hovering just below $4,000 for the first time in several years. With regulatory crackdowns and the bursting of the initial coin offering (ICO) bubble contributing to the downturn, there would be a steep hill to climb before the crypto industry could recover.
From 2019 to the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, a similar pattern would unfurl as the value of the leading cryptocurrency climbed over $10,00 and dropped to below $4,000 again. In late 2020, however, an impressive bull run was on the cards that resulted in BTC surpassing its previous all-time high value.
Institutional adoption played a crucial role in this rally, as well-known companies like MicroStrategy and Tesla invested large sums in Bitcoin. Additionally, the narrative of the crypto coin being a proper hedge against inflation gaining traction, as well as the weakening US dollar, helped to attract a new wave of retail investors.
But, in a pattern that had played out several times before, 2022 would bring a devastating crypto crash, with bitcoin tumbling to well below $10,000.
Now, in 2023, several signs indicate the coin will be heading once more into a bull run. While it started 2023 at around the $16000 mark, the price of BTC began to speak at the end of Q1, and it has now exceeded the $25,000 valuation.
$1 Million Bitcoin?
Like most currencies and commodities, the price of BTC is largely impacted by the forces of supply and demand. The more that Bitcoin is accepted, whether for transactions or as a way to invest or store wealth, the more demand drives up its price. On the other end of the scale, if the popularity of the coin wanes, then so too does its value.
Since the start of 2023, bitcoin has steadily gained the upper hand over several other major commodity assets. According to Glassnode, the decentralised coin has outperformed gold, silver and crude oil, even displaying a growth rate of 14.5% during Q1. Having surpassed the quarter of a million dollars mark, is Bitcoin now on track to reach a $1 million valuation in the next couple of years?
According to Read Vision founder and CEO Raoul Pal, the next 24 months will be a crucial period that could see “an enormous wall of money” flow into the top crypto asset; he’s even predicted that it will hit that elusive one-million-dollar valuation by 2025.
While any price prediction is speculative, and the coin still has a long way to go before it can outperform its earlier highest-ever valuation, several crypto experts are keeping a bullish perspective. One of the major reasons for this is the upcoming halving event in 2024.
Historically, BTC halving has played a key role in achieving momentum in the market. A bull run is never guaranteed following this four-yearly mining event, but it seems that several “Bitcoin Whales” are positive an upswing will be on the cards if their surge in accumulation is anything to go by.
Source: https://en.cryptonomist.ch/2023/06/21/can-bitcoin-reach-1-million-decade/