Although I don't have plans to invest in Bitcoin at this point, I do believe there is a strong probability that the cryptocurrency could climb to a new high before Christmas.
Here are three reasons why the Bitcoin price could go higher:
- Speculation.
With some cryptocurrency experts predicting that the Bitcoin price could climb as high as US$100,000 in the future, many day traders and speculators see it as way of getting rich quickly. Kay Van-Peterson from Saxo Bank believes this could happen in the space of 10 years if cryptocurrencies can grow to account for 10% of the average daily volumes (ADV) of fiat currency trade. Van-Petersen, according to CNBC, estimates that Bitcoin could account for 35% of this, giving it an ADV of US$175 billion. At 10x ADV, Bitcoin would have a market cap of US$1.75 trillion. Divided by an estimated 17 million Bitcoin, this equates to a price of just over US$100,000 per coin.
- Risk events.
Although gold is still by far the number one destination for many investors during risk events, more and more investors are now turning to Bitcoin as a safe haven. I believe that as the correlation between Bitcoin rises and risk events strengthens, even more investors will start to utilise the cryptocurrency. And although tensions in Korea appear to have cooled, should they flare up I think the Bitcoin price will be one to watch.
- Adoption.
Although companies such as Digitalx Ltd (ASX: DCC) are intent on bringing Bitcoin to the masses through ICOs and Bitcoin ATMs, right now most consumers don't come across Bitcoin in their day-to-day lives. But this could change very quickly if a retail giant such as Amazon were to start to accept it as a form of payment. The e-commerce giant has recently registered some web domains that include popular cryptocurrency names. For example, Amazonbitcoin.com redirects through to its Amazon.com website. However, this may be less about it accepting it as a payment and more about protecting its business name from those looking to leverage it.
Foolish Takeaway.
Overall, I think it is very likely that the Bitcoin price will continue to climb higher and higher over the next few months. However, it does carry an enormous amount of risk and should be handled very carefully.
I would suggest that anyone looking to gain exposure to the cryptocurrency limits it to just a small part of their portfolio.
