Record Weekly Close Above $106,000 as All-Time High Approaches

TLDR

• Bitcoin reached a record weekly close above $106,000, approaching its January all-time high of $109,500
• Strong institutional adoption with $608 million in ETF inflows and corporate purchases driving price momentum
• Arthur Hayes predicts Bitcoin needs to break $110,000 before altcoin season begins
• MicroStrategy added 13,390 BTC worth $1.3 billion to its holdings, now owning 568,840 BTC total
• Analysts cite supply-demand imbalance as key factor, with miners producing only 165,000 BTC this year while demand exceeds this amount

Bitcoin has notched its highest-ever weekly close, settling above $106,000 after a weekend rally. This marks six consecutive weeks of gains for the leading cryptocurrency, bringing it within 3% of its all-time high of $109,358 set in January.

The digital asset pushed as high as $107,000 on Sunday before easing to around $104,500, with analysts viewing the pullback as healthy consolidation.

The current price action mirrors Bitcoin’s November performance when it added $30,000 in just three weeks.

Bitcoin has gained approximately $12,000 so far in May, climbing from $94,000 to over $106,000 before its recent pullback.

This surge comes as investor appetite for Bitcoin investment products remains robust. US-listed spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded net inflows of $608 million, continuing strong momentum.

BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust led the market, pulling in more than $840 million. This exceeds the combined net inflows of all other ETF products.

Institutional Adoption Accelerating

Corporate demand for Bitcoin continues to grow steadily. MicroStrategy, the largest corporate holder of BTC, recently announced the acquisition of an additional 13,390 BTC for approximately $1.3 billion.

This brings the company’s total holdings to 568,840 BTC. Their aggressive accumulation strategy sets the pace for institutional adoption.

A growing number of companies have either adopted Bitcoin or announced plans to hold it as a strategic reserve asset. Many are expected to continue purchasing BTC in the months ahead.

The global race among nations to establish sovereign Bitcoin reserves is also anticipated to accelerate. This will further tighten supply in the coming years.

According to Matt Hougan, Chief Investment Officer at Bitwise, demand is now outpacing supply. With miners projected to produce just 165,000 BTC this year, public companies and ETFs have already acquired more than that amount.

This structural imbalance is viewed as a key driver that could propel Bitcoin beyond current levels. Hougan sees $200,000 as the next major target.

Future Price Projections

BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes shared his outlook in a recent interview with Fortune Crypto. He believes Bitcoin needs to break through $110,000 and rally toward the $150,000–$200,000 range on rising trading volume for the altcoin season to begin.

“I think that happens sometime in the summer or early third quarter, and then the rotation starts into various altcoins,” Hayes noted.

Hayes expects Bitcoin to climb toward $200,000 in its next surge and reach $250,000 by the end of the year. He projects Bitcoin will hit $1 million by 2028.

Unlike the explosive altcoin rally of 2021, where nearly every token surged regardless of fundamentals, Hayes believes the next cycle will likely be more selective.

Analyst Willy Woo examined Bitcoin’s compound annual growth rate (CAGR), noting that it trends downward as the network continues to store more capital.

People think BTC is like a magical unicorn that climbs to infinity on moonbeams. Here’s the actual CAGR chart. We are well past the 2017 year where we’d see many 100s of percent growth.

Now look at 2020, that was the year BTC got institutionalised, corporations and sovereigns… pic.twitter.com/hcGAGZXkU5

— Willy Woo (@woonomic) May 18, 2025

“BTC is now traded as the newest macro asset in 150 years, it’ll continue to absorb capital until it reaches its equilibrium,” he said.

Woo compared it to long-term monetary expansion of 5% and GDP growth of 3%, estimating that Bitcoin’s annual growth rate will be around 8% in approximately 15 to 20 years when it has settled.

Bitcoin’s six consecutive weekly gains have been fueled by persistent inflows into spot Bitcoin ETFs and steady corporate demand.

According to analysts at Bitfinex, “This is not a melt-up—it’s a structurally supported move. As long as ETF and institutional flows persist and macro stays stable, dips are likely to be brief and bought aggressively. The path of least resistance remains higher.”

Bitcoin’s steady ascent toward new all-time highs reflects growing mainstream acceptance and increasing institutional commitment to the digital asset.