‘We Expect Bitcoin to Top $200K by the End of Year’, Says Bitwise CIO

At the time of writing, bitcoin (BTC) is hovering around the $118,000 level, flirting with the idea of setting a new all-time high this weekend.

On Friday, Bloomberg Senior ETF Analyst Eric Balchunas noted on X that BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF (IBIT) had reached an important milestone at the close of trading on the previous day, becoming the fastest ETF to reach $80 billion in assets under management (AUM). The second fastest ETF to achieve this level was Vanguard’s S&P 500 ETF (VOO), which reached it in 1,814 days.

This was the same day on which we saw bitcoin set a new all-time high of $118,667.

During interviews with CNBC and Yahoo Finance, Bitwise Asset Management CIO Matt Hougan said his firm expects the BTC price to reach over $200,000 by the end of this year.

As for how high bitcoin could go, hedge fund manager James Lavish says that the bitcoin price is similar to the U.S. debt ceiling in that, ultimately, there is no limit.

Technical Analysis

• Bitcoin displayed a consolidation pattern throughout the 23-hour timeframe from July 11 11:00 to July 12 10:00 UTC, operating within a comprehensive range of $1,633.46, representing 1% from the peak of $118,226.29 to the trough of $116,592.83, according to CoinDesk Research’s technical analysis model.
• The most significant price movements occurred during the initial hours, particularly around 13:00 and 15:00 UTC on July 11, when elevated volume above the 24-hour average of 7,291 accompanied pronounced intraday swings, forming key support near $116,726.00 and resistance around $118,226.00.
• Following this early turbulence, BTC demonstrated exceptional stability with decreasing volume, consolidating mainly between $117,400.00-$117,900.00, before exhibiting renewed strength in the final hours with a recovery toward $118,025.00, suggesting potential bullish momentum developing for the subsequent trading session.
• Throughout the final 60 minutes from July 12 09:57 to 10:56 UTC, Bitcoin encountered heightened volatility with a notable downward movement from $118,121.16 to a low of $117,835.74 at 10:14, followed by a strong rebound that established the $118,000.00-$118,070.00 range as a new consolidation zone.
• The period displayed classic support and resistance dynamics, with volume spikes of 392.48 and 382.49 during the 10:12-10:14 selloff confirming institutional participation, while the subsequent recovery above $118,035.00 on diminishing volume suggests underlying strength and potential for continued upward momentum.

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