Bitcoin’s (BTC-USD) recent cross above $100,000 has emboldened Wall Street bulls.
After Donald Trump’s presidential win catalyzed the token’s rally on hopes of crypto-friendly policies, this week’s push to record highs above $103,000 per token has some strategists looking for another doubling in price by the end of next year.
“We remain convinced $100,000 is not the final milestone,” Bernstein analyst Gautam Chhugani wrote in a note on Thursday. “We expect Bitcoin to hit a cycle-high of $200,000 in late 2025,”
Chhugani noted the President-elect’s pick of crypto advocate Paul Atkins to chair the Securities and Exchange Commission, along with a broader regulatory direction under Trump 2.0, “is materially positive” for the wider crypto industry.
After bitcoin surpassed $100,000 for the first time, Trump took to social media early Thursday to congratulate crypto investors, adding, “YOU’RE WELCOME!!!”
Later that day, the president-elect announced he would appoint venture capitalist David Sacks as the incoming administration’s “AI and Crypto Czar.” The move was seen as yet another positive sign for the industry.
“As crypto becomes mainstream, it will likely converge and transform capital markets and change the way we deliver financial services across the world,” Bernstein’s Chhugani wrote.
“We expect Bitcoin to emerge as the new-age premier ‘store of value’ asset eventually replacing Gold over the next decade and becoming a permanent part of institutional multi-asset allocation and a standard for corporate treasury management,” he added.
At UK-based Standard Chartered, analysts noted bitcoin flows have been dominated by institutional investors this year, with institutions buying 683,000 tokens year to date via spot ETFs along with big purchases by software firm MicroStrategy (MSTR).
About a third of those inflows, or the purchase of 245,000 bitcoins, have occurred since the presidential election.
“In 2025, we expect institutional flows to continue at or above the 2024 pace,” wrote Geoff Kendrick, global head of digital assets research at Standard Chartered.
Kendrick expects global pension funds to increase their spot ETF holdings as expected regulatory changes from the Trump administration make it easier for traditional investors to increase their exposure to digital assets.
“Against this backdrop, we think our end-2025 BTC price target around the USD 200,000 level is achievable,” Kendrick wrote.
Bitcoin has rallied almost 130% year to date and roughly 45% since Trump’s White House victory in November. Investor optimism accelerated last month after the SEC announced Chair Gary Gensler will step down on Jan. 20, 2025.
