Ethereum’s outlook for 2026 has become increasingly contested after the most recent downturn in the entire crypto market. Earlier this year, research from Standard Chartered suggested that Ethereum could end 2026 near $7,500, a target that implies significant upside from current levels. However, recent price action, with ETH languishing around $2,000 and lacking clear bullish momentum, puts such projections against a very different realistic outlook. Standard Chartered’s Ethereum Long-Term View In a January research note, Standard Chartered’s digital assets team trimmed its medium-term outlook for Ethereum while keeping a highly optimistic vision for the years ahead. The bank now sees ether closing 2026 near $7,500, down from an earlier forecast of around $12,000, and expects the asset to climb to $15,000 in 2027, $22,000 in 2028, and eventually $40,000 by the end of 2030. Related Reading: Ethereum Price Is Not Going To Keep Falling Forever, Analyst Says According to the note, the change is due to weak performance from Bitcoin dragging broader dollar-denominated crypto valuations, even as the bank pointed to Ethereum’s strengths in stablecoins, decentralized finance, and tokenized assets as positives to hold on to. In the research note, digital assets analyst Geoff Kendrick noted that 2026 is important not just for price but also for Ethereum’s performance relative to bitcoin. Therefore, the most important thing for gains is a rebound in the ETH/BTC ratio to levels last seen in 2021. The Odds – Current Price Action Against Bullish Case The path from roughly $2,000 to the mid-$7,000s looks very tough compared to what it was at the start of the year. This, in turn, has seen the odds of the Ethereum price reaching $7,500 reduce drastically. Ethereum started 2026 on a good foot, with a rally to $3,370 in the first two weeks of the year. Notably, it failed to sustain this rally and has since fallen by about 40% in the past 30 days. Related Reading: Analyst Says You’re Not Bullish Enough On Ethereum – What Does He Mean? As it stands, Ethereum is now trading around $2,000, and the price has repeatedly failed to close convincingly above the $2,100-$2,150 zone in recent sessions. Although the leading altcoin is now back to trading above $2,000 after a break below during last week’s sell-offs, bulls are yet to establish any control of price momentum. On-chain data also shows the transfer activity surrounding Ethereum is pointing to elevated stress conditions. Fortunately for bullish traders, it is still too early in the year to rule out the possibility of Ethereum trading at $7,500 in 2026. Several things would need to change for an outcome close to Standard Chartered’s 2026 estimate to become plausible. One of them is the return of demand and steady inflows into Spot Ethereum ETFs. At the time of writing, Ethereum is trading at $2,025. Right now, the cryptocurrency needs to clear the $2,150 resistance and hold above it in order to continue the steady push up. Featured image from Pxfuel, chart from Tradingview.com
As Solana (SOL) trades at multi-year lows, some analysts have lowered their end-of-year targets. Meanwhile, other market watchers have warned that the altcoin risks another 50% correction after a bearish formation was recently confirmed. Related Reading: BNB Chain Metrics Show Strong Performance As BNB Price Retests ‘Do Or Die’ Level Solana Confirms Head And Shoulders Pattern On Wednesday, Solana retraced nearly 10% in the daily timeframe, reaching a two-year low of $90. The cryptocurrency had been trading between $120 and $250 in the monthly chart since February 2024, retesting and bouncing from its macro support multiple times. The altcoin lost this crucial area over the weekend, closing January at around $105. After failing to maintain this level, SOL started the month attempting to hold the $100 psychological barrier and reclaim the $105 resistance as support. Nonetheless, the latest market movement, which also dragged Bitcoin (BTC) toward multi-year lows, pushed Solana below its bull market lows from last year. Amid this performance, market observer Alex Clay affirmed that SOL has “started to look bad.” The analyst affirmed that the altcoin’s chart shows a confirmed bearish formation after the recent price action, noting that it has also lost an important support zone. Per the chart, the cryptocurrency displays a macro Head and Shoulders (H&S) pattern in the weekly timeframe, which has been forming since early 2024. The left shoulder developed during the Q1-Q2 2024 run, while the head formed during its late 2024 and early 2025 rally, which led to its All-Time High (ATH) of $293. This performance placed the neckline of the bearish formation around the $105 area. Notably, the pattern’s right shoulder began to develop after the Q3 2025 rally and was confirmed during the latest market crash. Now, the cryptocurrency has fallen below the neckline and could confirm it as resistance if the price closes the week under $105. Clay warned that the pattern’s first target sits around the $42 mark, which would represent a 55% correction from the current levels. SOL’s Chart Tell ‘Grim’ Story Other market watchers also expressed their concerns about SOL’s future performance, suggesting that a correction toward new lows is likely. Sjuul from AltCryptoGems noted that the Solana chart gives “a truly panic-inducing feeling” with “a vast no man’s land!” below it. Similarly, Crypto Tony asserted that after breaking the $100 low “with conviction,” the next major support for the altcoin sits around $50. To him, a correction toward this area is “obvious” as Bitcoin has “yet to find a bottom.” Altcoin Sherpa cautioned that SOL has also lost the 200-Week Exponential Moving Average (EMA), which is “a last stand area before $75 or lower.” He pointed out that the cryptocurrency tends to have strong price reactions due to “the gambling chain,” but noted that means corrections are usually stronger. Related Reading: Crypto Market Crash ‘Worse Than Expected’ But Bottom Might Be Near, Says Tom Lee Moreover, a major financial institution has recently lowered its end-of-year target for Solana. As reported by NewsBTC, Standard Chartered trimmed its near-term forecast from $310 to $250, mentioning the time required for the network’s next major use case to scale. Despite its short-term trim, the bank raised its longer-term targets, forecasting SOL at $2,000 by 2030 as it stops being “a one-trick pony” and evolves “from memecoins to micropayments.” As of this writing, Solana is trading at $93.28, a 27.9% decline on the weekly timeframe. Featured Image from Unsplash.com, Chart from TradingView.com
Standard Chartered has lowered its end-2026 price target for Solana to $250, down from $310, while leaving its longer-dated trajectory intact. The bank’s roadmap still points to $2,000 by 2030 as the bank argues the chain’s activity mix is rotating away from memecoin-led trading toward stablecoin-based micropayments. The revised forecast comes as the bank’s digital assets research team frames the current drawdown as a period when “performance differentiation” across crypto should become more visible, rather than a tape where everything trades as a single risk bucket. Why Standard Chartered Lowers The 2026 Solana Target, Boosts Long View Behind the 2026 haircut is a more skeptical view on how quickly Solana can convert its cost and throughput advantages into sustained, fee-generating economic activity beyond speculative bursts. In Standard Chartered’s telling, Solana is in the middle of a narrative transition that is strategically attractive but not instantaneous in market terms. Related Reading: Solana Returns To A Critical Demand Zone — Trend Reload Or Breakdown Risk? Geoffrey Kendrick, Standard Chartered’s head of global digital assets research, anchored the shift in decentralized exchange (DEX) flow composition. “When we initiated coverage of Solana in May 2025, we observed that activity on the network was largely concentrated in memecoin trading on DEXs.” “Composition of DEX flows has shifted from memecoin trading toward SOL–stablecoin pairs.” That rotation, Kendrick argued, accelerated over 2025 as capital moved away from meme-focused activity which he said peaked in mid-January around the launch of the Trump token and toward tokenized dollars. The implication is that Solana’s DEX activity is beginning to resemble a payments-adjacent rail more than a single-cycle casino, even if overall volumes have cooled. Standard Chartered also flagged Solana’s ultra-low transaction costs as a key enabler for “micropayment” use cases, including AI-driven payments, where even modest fee overhead can break unit economics. One of the more striking metrics in the report is stablecoin turnover: Kendrick said stablecoin velocity on Solana is already two to three times higher than on Ethereum, suggesting Solana may be carving out a distinct role for high-frequency, low-value transfers. Related Reading: Solana Could Reach $1,600+ Within Five Years, Bitwise CIO Says The bank tied that possibility to “internet-native” payment protocols such as Coinbase-backed x402, while cautioning that the repositioning will take time to translate into market leadership. That slower timeline is part of why Standard Chartered expects Solana to lag Ethereum in the 2026–2027 window, even as the bank becomes more constructive on Solana’s longer-run upside if micropayment demand compounds. Despite trimming the 2026 target, Standard Chartered’s longer-term schedule remains aggressive: $400 in 2027, $700 in 2028, $1,200 in 2029, and $2,000 by end-2030, according to reporting by The Block. The bank’s framework implies that Solana’s “micropayments” phase is expected to matter more as the cycle matures, with Kendrick also projecting Solana to outperform Bitcoin over 2027–2030. At press time, SOL traded at $96.93. Featured image created with DALL.E, chart from TradingView.com
The delay of market structure legislation highlights a growing threat to domestic lenders as digital dollars begin to cannibalize traditional bank deposits.
Retail traders are increasingly optimistic about XRP, even though the cryptocurrency’s price is currently struggling to keep up above $1.90. Despite the recent lack of follow-through in price action, different data shows confidence is building beneath the surface. Data from prediction markets by Robinhood shows traders are actively pricing in the possibility of a sizable upside move for XRP’s price action this year, with odds pointing toward a rally of roughly 40% from current levels. How Prediction Market Pricing Is Reflecting Bullish Expectations Data from prediction markets hosted on Robinhood shows that traders are actively trading contracts tied to XRP reaching specific price levels in 2026. Notably, the data shows that the contract for XRP trading at $2.75 in 2026 is currently quoted with a bid of $0.66 and an ask of $0.73. Related Reading: XRP Price Obliteration Is Not A Matter Of If, New All-Time Highs Are Coming An ask of $0.73 means that the Robinhood prediction platform believes the likelihood of XRP reaching or exceeding $2.75 is high enough to demand a significant premium. Although this does not represent a guaranteed probability, it suggests that traders offering liquidity see that outcome as more likely than not, placing implied odds in the 73% range based on current pricing. That same optimism is present as price targets move higher, though more measured. The contract tied to XRP crossing $3.00 is priced around 50 cents. This implies the market views that level as a roughly even chance and a 50% scenario that the XRP price breaks above $3 again in 2026. The ask price drops to 44 cents for an XRP price bet of $3.25, which means there is a 44% chance XRP reaches this level. Can XRP Still Rally While Near $1.90? Recent price action has seen XRP now back to trading around support at $1.9. At the time of writing, XRP is trading at $1.88, down by 5% in the past seven days. This decline is part of an extended correction move after XRP’s rally in early January was rejected around $2.41 on January 6. Related Reading: XRP Price Recovery Is Possible If It Reclaims This Ichimoku Base The entire crypto industry is now back to a mood of fear, according to CoinMarketCap’s Fear & Greed Index. The index shows that the overall market sentiment is currently sitting at a Fear reading of 29. Even so, this risk-off mood has done little to dampen bullish expectations among many XRP investors. Several forecasts published in January continue to point toward a move into new all-time price highs this year. Standard Chartered’s analysts, for example, have projected that XRP could reach $8 in 2026 if sustained ETF inflows and clearer regulation are able to increase institutional interest. Another price outlook echoed the idea that a new all-time high above $5 is possible before the year ends based on the current trend of XRP outflows from crypto exchange reserves. Featured image from Freepik, chart from Tradingview.com
Standard Chartered has pushed its base-case price target for Ethereum to $7,500 by the end of the year, a big jump from an earlier $4,000 projection. Related Reading: Bitcoin’s New Power Buyers: Companies Bought 3 Times What Miners Produced According to the bank’s digital assets team, growing demand from corporate treasury buyers and spot ETH products has driven the change in outlook. Bank Raises Ethereum Target The bank’s lead analyst expects fee growth on the Ethereum network and stronger institutional adoption to be key drivers for the move higher. The bank also revised its longer-term numbers, lifting its 2028 target to $25,000 and laying out scenarios that push toward $40,000 by 2030. These wider targets reflect models where stablecoins and tokenized assets expand on Ethereum’s chain. Institutional Buying Drives Demand Data cited by market researchers points to heavy accumulation since June, with spot ETF flows and treasury firms together taking close to 4% of Ether’s circulating supply over that period. ETHEREUM SEEN OUTPERFORMING BITCOIN Standard Chartered says Ethereum’s outlook has improved and it is likely to outperform bitcoin. While weak bitcoin performance has weighed on the broader crypto market, rising institutional demand for ethereum and its dominance in stablecoins,… — *Walter Bloomberg (@DeItaone) January 13, 2026 Treasury firms alone reportedly bought about 2.3 million ETH in just over two months, a pace that Standard Chartered says outstrips some previous accumulation phases seen in Bitcoin. Ethereum Vs. Bitcoin Standard Chartered’s note also argues that Ether could outperform Bitcoin, raising the possibility of the ETH/BTC ratio returning toward levels last seen during 2021’s run-up. Based on the bank’s scenarios, weaker Bitcoin momentum combined with stronger real-world use of Ethereum might lift Ether’s price faster than Bitcoin’s in the months ahead. Long-Term Upside Scenarios Some headlines have pointed to even bigger long-range targets produced by the same models, including forecasts of $30,000 by 2029 and $40,000 by 2030 under more bullish assumptions. These outcomes rely on a substantial expansion of stablecoin use, tokenized real-world assets, and continued staking demand that would remove supply from the market. Independent forecasters remain split, and other banks have offered lower year-end projections, offering a reminder that expert views differ. Meanwhile, market watchers caution, though, that relative moves depend heavily on ETF flows and corporate balance-sheet decisions. Related Reading: Bitcoin At $100K Could Spark A Fresh Wave Of Retail FOMO, Analysts Warn Network Fundamentals And Risks According to the bank, Ethereum’s large share of stablecoin activity and its role in decentralized finance make fee income and on-chain demand a meaningful part of valuation models. That said, the bank notes that scale improvements and Layer 1 throughput will matter a lot if big, traditional finance transactions migrate onchain. The research also warns that shifts in macro conditions, outflows from major ETFs, or regulatory setbacks could change the math quickly. Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView
Ethereum’s outlook has been improving its case. After a prolonged period of underperformance and skepticism, the network is starting to exhibit signs of renewed structural and fundamental strength. While BTC continues to anchor the market as the primary store of value and digital gold, conditions are emerging that could allow ETH to outperform BTC over the coming period. Why The Ethereum Narrative Is Gaining Strength Ethereum has been seen outperforming Bitcoin. In a recent post on X, Walter Bloomberg revealed that Standard Chartered says that the ETH outlook has improved, and now ETH might outperform BTC, citing rising institutional demand and stronger fundamental positioning across key on-chain sectors. Related Reading: Altcoin Season In Q1? Bitcoin, Ethereum Breakdown Maps Out Performance While weakness in BTC has weighed on the broader crypto market, ETH has continued to benefit from institutional-driven demand, and its dominance in stablecoins, decentralized finance (DeFi), and real-world assets (RWA) tokenization. Standard Chartered also points to the increased throughput and potential US regulatory clarity that it could provide additional upside. In terms of valuation, the bank forecasts ETH at $7,500 this year and $30,000 by 2029, reflecting the expectations of sustained network growth. The Co-founder of PinkBrains_io, a DeFi Creator Studio, DefiIgnas, has highlighted that Ethereum could outperform Bitcoin this year, and the reason is roadmap execution. While BTC will likely keep facing recurring waves of quantum FUD into 2026, ETH has a clear roadmap to prepare for future cryptographic risks. Furthermore, ETH is actually scaling. Gas limits on layer 1 keep rising, and zkEVMs will get full production readiness, making ETH cheap and fast enough for high-value transactions, while layer 2s will handle most of the trading and high-frequency activity. Related Reading: Bitcoin And Ethereum Market Structure Points To Crypto Winter – Details These upgrades are incremental, which means there’s no breaking news moment for ETH, but progress is happening fast. Early in the cycle, a lot of Degens loaded up on ETH before the bull run, but many got disillusioned and sold their ETH for BTC. “It would be fun to see the playbook reverse higher,” DefiIgnas noted. A Different Liquidity Cycle Than Previous Bull Markets Crypto liquidity quality witnessed a change in 2025. A technical analyst and show host of Crypto Banter, Kyledoops, reported that Wintermute noted that capital in 2025 stopped rotating broadly across the market. Instead, liquidity is concentrated into Bitcoin, Ethereum, and a small group of large-cap tokens. As a result, the long-anticipated wave of altcoin-wide liquidity never really arrived. Meanwhile, the rise of spot ETFs and crypto treasury vehicles created a new, highly structured inflow channel that funneled flow into the top of the market. These vehicles break the crypto’s oldest playbooks. Price action is no longer driven by broad market expansion. It’s driven by where new liquidity can actually enter. Featured image from iStock, chart from Tradingview.com
XRP is trading at around $2.06 on January 13, 2026, leaving its price action a full step below the zone that capped its last rally that ended with a high of $3.65 in July 2025. However, predictions that point to XRP reclaiming that peak and then pushing into new highs above $3.8, have been on the front page of bank research notes and trader-led chart projections. Notably, various technical analyses have suggested that XRP is programmed to return back into the upper-$3s and into new price territories this year. Standard Chartered’s XRP Target Clears $3.8 XRP’s all-time high price now looks out of reach, especially considering the cryptocurrency is now struggling to leave $2 behind. At the time of writing, XRP has dropped by about 44% from its July 2025 peak of $3.65, but institutional buys from Spot XRP ETFs are still giving glimmers of hope. Related Reading: XRP Back At The Edge: Will Breaking $2 Barrier Rewrite Its History? One of the most recently notable institutional-style projections from XRP comes from Standard Chartered’s digital assets research, which lays out a multi-year path that sees XRP breaking well above the $3.8 threshold. According to analysts at the bank, XRP is slated to reach as high as $8 by the end of 2026, a level that comfortably eclipses the previous peak and implies roughly 300% upside from current levels if certain conditions hold. Interestingly, this outlook came from Geoffrey Kendrick, Standard Chartered’s Global Head of Digital Assets Research. The prediction was made based on an outlook of continued institutional adoption and strong inflows into XRP-based spot ETFs. Technical Outlooks As Ripple Heads Into A Consequential 2026 Recent technical commentary from multiple analysts has converged on a bullish bias for XRP. For instance, XRP analyst EGRAG CRYPTO pointed out a developing breakout retest structure on the monthly candlestick timeframe. According to the analyst, historical probabilities favor upside as long as XRP holds above the $1.60 to $1.40 range on higher timeframes, with long-term channel projections placing the XRP price as high as $22. For a shorter-term perspective, Crypto Feras described XRP’s recent break above $2 as a bullish reversal signal. His analysis points to $2.67 and $3.01 as the next resistance levels, areas that could open the path toward a full retest of the prior peak near $3.8 if cleared. Adding to this, ChartNerd noted that XRP’s long-term upside fractal structure is still valid despite the recent XRP price correction. Related Reading: Analyst Updates XRP Price Prediction: Why $16 Is Still On The Table These price projections are being viewed more favorably against the backdrop of Ripple’s momentum heading into the year. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse recently pointed to strong progress in 2025 with examples of major acquisitions of Ripple Prime and GTreasury and a growing global licensing footprint. Now that Ripple is positioning itself for what its leadership has described as a consequential 2026, the combination of technical outlooks and company fundamentals has strengthened the narrative that XRP could be approaching a move to new all-time highs. Featured image from Adobe Stock, chart from Tradingview.com
The bank sees ether benefiting from sector-specific tailwinds even as broader crypto momentum remains uneven.
Standard Chartered analysts have predicted that the XRP price could surge by around 330%. They also outlined catalysts that could spark this price surge, which would lead to a new all-time high (ATH) for the Ripple-linked token. Standard Chartered Predicts XRP Price Surge To $8 Standard Chartered’s global head of digital assets research, Geoff Hendrick, has predicted that the XRP price could surge to $8 by the end of 2026, which represents an increase of around 330%. This would also mark a new all-time high for the token, with its current ATH at around $3.84. The analyst expects the token to record such growth, as it now has legal clarity following the settlement of the Ripple-SEC lawsuit. Related Reading: This Double Bottom Formation Could Send XRP Soaring To $2.5 Kendrick also expects the XRP price to surge to $8 on the back of regulatory clarity for the U.S. crypto industry and institutional adoption of the token through the XRP ETFs. The Standard Chartered analyst noted how the improving regulatory environment has made it easier for institutions to gain exposure to the token. Meanwhile, Ripple has been able to grow its payment system, which involves XRP, thanks to the regulatory-friendly environment. These XRP ETFs are notably seeing significant demand, which is bullish for the XRP price as it eyes a rally to $8 next year. SoSoValue data shows that these ETFs have yet to record a daily net outflow since the first spot fund launched last month. The XRP ETFs currently boast a net asset of $1.27 billion, which reprersents 1.12% of the token’s market cap. Crypto pundit Unknow noted that these ETFs are absorbing the supply fast, which is why he predicts that a supply shock could happen by early 2026, sending the XRP price higher. The pundit also declared that next year is the inflection point where the altcoin shifts from speculation to global liquidity infrastructure. XRP Is Preparing For a Breakout In an X post, crypto analyst TARA stated that the XRP price is approaching the critical $1.88 level and is in a very tight range, signaling a breakout is coming soon. The analyst noted that XRP needs to hold support at $1.87, even as Bitcoin approaches $88,000. She added that if the altcoin bounces from here and tests $1.88 again, it could break above that resistance and then hold it as support, which TARA noted would be a very bullish sign. In another X post, she revealed that XRP’s Relative Strength Index (RSI) was trying to break to the upside. TARA further remarked that if today’s close is bullish, with a close above $1.88, it could fuel the next wave to $2.30 for the XRP price. A positive for XRP is that Glassnode data shows that XRP on exchanges has dropped to a seven-year low of 1.6 billion tokens, down from 3.76 billion in October. Related Reading: XRP Hasn’t Entered A Bear Market Yet; Analyst Shares Why At the time of writing, the XRP price is trading at around $1.86, up in the last 24 hours, according to data from CoinMarketCap. Featured image from Adobe Stock, chart from Tradingview.com
The deal achieved T+0 settlement on a permissioned distributed ledger rather than a public blockchain, reflecting a growing regional shift toward regulated digital bond infrastructure.
The companies will explore the development of trading, prime services, custody, staking and lending solutions for institutional clients.
Standard Chartered has sharply reduced its famously bullish Bitcoin roadmap, cutting its 2026 price target in half and acknowledging that its previous near-term projections were too aggressive, even as it keeps an ultra-optimistic long-term view intact. Standard Chartered Downgrades Bitcoin Price Predictions In a note shared on X by VanEck head of research Matthew Sigel, Standard Chartered argues that Bitcoin’s traditional halving cycle has been overtaken by ETF-driven flows. The bank writes: “With the advent of ETF buying, we think the BTC halving cycle is no longer a relevant price driver. The logic in previous cycles (when US ETFs did not exist) – i.e., prices would peak about 18 months after each halving and decline thereafter – is no longer valid, in our view.” The report adds that it will “take a break of the current all-time high ($ 126,000 on 6 October 2025) to prove that; we expect this to happen in H1-2026.” Related Reading: Bitcoin In An Opportunity Zone? Hash Ribbons Flash New Buy Signal Alongside that shift in framework, the bank re-profiled its multi-year Bitcoin targets. According to the figures shared by Sigel, Standard Chartered has lowered its 2025 forecast from $200,000 to $100,000, its 2026 target from $300,000 to $150,000, its 2027 projection from $400,000 to $225,000, its 2028 estimate from $500,000 to $300,000, and its 2029 prediction from $500,000 to $400,000 while keeping a $500,000 target for 2030. Geoff Kendrick, Standard Chartered’s head of digital assets research, characterises the recent drawdown as painful but not structural. He describes the current phase as “a cold breeze,” explicitly rejecting the notion of a new crypto winter and noting that the magnitude of the pullback remains consistent with corrections seen in past bull cycles. At the same time, he points out that weaker valuations for listed Bitcoin treasury companies have curtailed their ability to act as major marginal buyers, leaving spot ETFs as the primary driver of near-term gains. Related Reading: Bitcoin To Hit $50 Million By 2041, Says EMJ Capital CEO Wall Street Giant Bernstein Agrees The downgrade also lands in the context of a broader rethink on Wall Street. One day earlier, on December 8, Sigel shared a separate note from Bernstein that reached a similar conclusion about Bitcoin’s market structure. Bernstein wrote that “the Bitcoin cycle has broken the 4-year pattern (cycle peaking every 4 years) and is now in an elongated bull-cycle with more sticky institutional buying offsetting any retail panic selling.” Despite an approximately 30% correction, the firm notes that “we have seen less than 5% outflows via ETFs.” On that basis, Bernstein now moves its 2026 Bitcoin price target to $150,000, sees the cycle “potentially peaking in 2027E at $200,000,” and keeps its long-term 2033 target at roughly $1,000,000 per BTC. Both Standard Chartered and Bernstein are converging on the same structural message: the halving alone no longer explains Bitcoin’s trajectory. ETF flows, institutional positioning and balance-sheet dynamics are now the core variables, even if their precise price targets and timelines diverge. At press time, Bitcoin traded at $92,686. Featured image created with DALL.E, chart from TradingView.com
Crypto analyst Colin has raised the possibility of the Bitcoin price mirroring gold’s parabolic move. The analyst further revealed how this could play out for BTC if it were to happen eventually. What Will Happen If The Bitcoin Price Mirrors Gold In an X post, Colin indicated that the Bitcoin price will record another uptrend as soon as next week if it were to follow gold’s move. He opined that it is unlikely the flagship crypto will not witness another significant move to the upside, given that gold and stocks saw meteoric rises to new all-time highs (ATHs) in recent months. Related Reading: Bitcoin Bull Market Peak Indicators Says Hold Despite Crash Below $100,000, What’s Happening? Coilin further remarked that money will still flow toward crypto, with a delay, as he highlighted in the gold vs BTC chart. He added that the gold top would forecast a top for the Bitcoin price in January 2026 when shifted forward by 80 days. His accompanying chart showed that BTC could still rally to $175,000 if its bull market extends into January next year. Colin admitted that this could be wrong for the Bitcoin price, but noted that many other metrics were pointing toward more upward price action for BTC. Meanwhile, he also highlighted the fact that sentiment was getting bearish in the crypto market. The market is currently on a downtrend, with the BTC dropping below $100,000 on several occasions this week. This has raised concerns that the Bitcoin price may already be in a bear market. However, Colin has indicated that BTC could still rally to new all-time highs before this cycle ends. His prediction aligns with that of the likes of Standard Chartered, which has predicted that BTC could reach between $150,000 and $20,000 by year-end. Why The BTC Top May Not Be In In another X post, Colin also explained why the top might not be in for the Bitcoin price in this bull run. He noted that the intersection of the 1150-day SMA with previous bull run peak times the top of the next peak. This happened in both the 2017 and 2021 bull runs, which marked the top for BTC at the time. Related Reading: Analyst Who Predicted Bitcoin Price October Top Is Back With A New Prediction Now, the analyst said that this moving average hasn’t quite lined up with the $65,000 top from the previous cycle, indicating that BTC still has more room to rally to the upside in this market cycle. Colin added that this 1150-day SMA, if projected out, will indicate a top for the Bitcoin price around late December this year or January next year. He reiterated that all metrics collectively point to a top around late December or January next year. At the time of writing, the Bitcoin price is trading at around $102,400, up in the last 24 hours, according to data from CoinMarketCap. Featured image from Pixabay, chart from Tradingview.com
At FinTech Week, the Standard Chartered CEO said Hong Kong’s digital asset pilots, including HKD-backed stablecoins and tokenized deposits, could transform cross-border trade, as regulators unveiled new rules allowing shared order books for crypto exchanges.
Crypto analyst PlanB has explained why the Bitcoin price may never drop below $100,000 again. This comes as market participants continue to speculate on whether the flagship crypto could fall below this psychological level if a full-blown bear market were to occur. Bitcoin Price Has Likely Turned $100,000 Into Support PlanB stated in an X post that he will not be surprised if the Bitcoin price does not drop below $100,000 again as the market witnesses the $100,000 resistance turn into $100,000 support. The analyst further noted that the September close was the fifth consecutive monthly close above that psychological price level. Related Reading: Here’s The Best Time To Buy Bitcoin As Impulse Wave Sets Path To $150,000 PlanB stated that the same thing happened when the Bitcoin price was trading at $10,000, $1,000, $100, and $10. The analyst’s remarks came as he noted that 63% of people think that Bitcoin will drop below $100,000. Notably, there were more calls for a drop below $100,000 towards the end of September when BTC dropped to as low as $108,000. Crypto influencer Ansem was among those who predicted that the flagship crypto would likely retest $90,000. However, the Bitcoin price has since staged a remarkable comeback from the $108,000 lows, rallying to a new all-time high (ATH) above $126,000 to start the month. As a result, BTC is already up 7% to start the month, with October notably the flagship crypto’s second-best performing month after November, based on historical data. It is worth noting that the Bitcoin price has traded above $100,000 since May 8 and has now been above this psychological level for over 150 days, its longest streak. Meanwhile, market participants are currently betting that it will likely stay this way. According to Polymarket data, there is only a 25% chance that BTC will drop below $100,000 by the end of this year. BTC Bull Market Still On Crypto analyst Titan of Crypto declared that the crypto market is still on and questioned why market participants were in a rush to call the top. The analyst noted that the Stoch Relative Strength Index (RSI) crossovers keep aligning with strength. He added that the chart will tell them when the bull run is over, but for now, that is not the case. Related Reading: Bitcoin’s 2021 Playbook Shows The Final Price Target For This Bull Cycle In another analysis, Titan of Crypto revealed that the Bitcoin price continues to print higher highs and higher lows. Based on this, he raised the possibility that BTC could rally to as high as $160,000 by the end of the year. This aligns with predictions by JPMorgan and Standard Chartered, which predict that BTC can reach $165,000 and $200,000, respectively, by year-end. At the time of writing, the Bitcoin price is trading at around $122,000, up in the last 24 hours, according to data from CoinMarketCap. Featured image from Pixabay, chart from Tradingview.com
Rising stablecoin usage could offer savers in weak economies a safer alternative to local banks.
Standard Chartered’s digital assets research chief says Ethereum still has room to rise, even after recent swings in price. According to Geoffrey Kendrick, growing institutional demand and shrinking exchange liquidity are tightening supply and could push Ether higher toward his year-end target of $7,500. Related Reading: XRP’s Biggest Doubter Just Dropped Close To $5 Price Bomb — Here’s Why Institutional Demand Up Reports have disclosed that corporate digital asset treasury firms have bought about 2.5% of circulating ETH since June. Spot ETH exchange-traded funds added close to 5% over the same period. Based on those figures, roughly 7.5% of supply has been drawn into corporate treasuries and ETFs since June, a large shift in a relatively short time. Kendrick expects these firms could eventually hold up to 10% of all circulating Ether, a projection that underpins his bullish view. Exchange Outflows And Price Moves Exchange-balance trackers show a substantial movement of coins off trading platforms. In a single day, over 74,000 ETH — roughly $340 million at recent prices — was withdrawn from exchanges, led by Binance. Such outflows are often read as a sign of reduced near-term selling pressure. Ethereum did slip about 5% on Tuesday before bouncing back. According to CoinMarketCap, it trades near $4,618, marking a 4.6% gain in the last 24 hours and a weekly rise of 10%. Resistance Levels To Watch Traders are watching short-term barriers around $4,600. A clear move above that level could open $4,700, with $4,800 the next checkpoint before the prior high. The asset briefly hit an all-time high of $4,950 on August 24. Kendrick’s forecast of $7,500 by year-end implies a roughly 60% climb from current prices, a scenario that would require continued strong flows and calm macro conditions. Corporate Moves Versus Market Supply Reports point to firms such as SharpLink Gaming and Bitmine Immersion being valued in relation to their ETH exposure. Kendrick compared these companies to Strategy’s approach with Bitcoin, arguing some are priced below what he considers fair value. SharpLink has announced a share repurchase program that would trigger if its metric net asset value falls below 1.0, a move that could set a price floor for the stock. Related Reading: Dogecoin Gears Up For Triple Surge Vs. Bitcoin – Details That corporate behavior, while supportive for those equities, is not identical to permanent removal of ETH from circulation the way staking or ETF custody can be. The bullish picture rests on a few big assumptions. Macro shocks, quick shifts in investor sentiment, or regulatory moves could reverse flows fast. Crowded positions can be created when many buyers chase the same theme, and those positions can amplify volatility if sentiment changes. Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView
Since the beginning of June, ether treasury companies and ETH ETFs have purchased a massive 4.9% of the crypto's circulation, the bank's Geoff Kendrick said.
Analyst Geoff Kendrick cited surging institutional demand, favorable regulation and network upgrades.
The banks says ETH treasuries and ETH ETF holders each bought 1.6% of supply since June, with more upside ahead.
JellyC is working with OKX and Standard Chartered to use cryptocurrencies and tokenized money market funds as off-exchange collateral.
The bank’s UK branch offers regulated, deliverable spot trading for Bitcoin and Ether to institutional clients.
Zodia Custody is looking after tokenized emeralds through a partnership with Swiss fintech firm GEMx.
The Bitcoin bull market looks to be back following BTC’s surge above $100,000. With market participants again accumulating following this recent rally, crypto pundit Ardizor has revealed when to sell everything to avoid roundtripping on gains made in this bull market. When To Sell Everything In This Bitcoin Bull Market In an X post, Ardizor stated that he will sell nearly everything in this bull market when BTC’s “Profitability Index” rises above 300% and crypto becomes more popular on TikTok or Instagram, and when market participants think they are the “smartest.” He further outlined three other events that could mark the top and act as a clue to sell everything. Related Reading: Why The US-China 90-Day Tariff Slash Can Push Bitcoin Price Above $110,000 The first is when crypto exchange Coinbase becomes the number one on the app store for two months, and every taxi driver starts speaking crypto. The other two clues are when the BTC Coin Days Destroyed (CDD) metric rises above 300 million and when old friends are inquiring about whether they should buy crypto now. He asserted that the Bitcoin bull market will reach its peak when these things begin to happen. Until then, Ardizor revealed that he will be accumulating more coins daily. The pundit also told crypto community members that he would announce publicly when it was time to sell everything. In another X post, Ardizor provided insights into how investors should allocate their capital in this Bitcoin bull market. He stated that 40% should be invested in BTC, 20% in ETH, 10% in “quality alts,” 5% in high-potential meme coins, 15% working capital, and 20% in USDT to buy dips. Market participants are actively accumulating more coins with the Bitcoin bull market in play following BTC’s rally above $100,000. Crypto analyst Ali Martinez cited Glassnode’s data while revealing that $35 billion has flowed into the crypto market in the past three weeks. A Possible Top For BTC In This Market Cycle Market experts have provided the price targets that could mark the BTC top in this Bitcoin bull market. Veteran trader Peter Brandt stated that the leading crypto is on target to reach the bull market cycle top in the $125,000 to $150,000 level by August or September this year. Once that happens, he predicts that a 50% correction will follow. Related Reading: Analyst Predicts Bitcoin Price Surge To $120,000 And Then A 50% Crash To $60,000, Here’s When Crypto analyst CrediBULL Crypto also reaffirmed that his target for this Bitcoin market cycle is $150,000. However, he also raised the possibility of BTC reaching $200,000 based on Jim Cramer’s statement that the leading crypto cannot achieve that target in this bull run. Standard Chartered has also predicted that $200,000 is achievable for BTC by year-end. At the time of writing, the Bitcoin price is trading at around $103,600, up in the last 24 hours, according to data from CoinMarketCap. Featured image from Getty Images, chart from Tradingview.com
FalconX is seeking to bridge the gap between traditional finance and crypto through bringing its service up to the level one would find at a TradFi institution
Standard Chartered has initiated formal coverage of Binance’s exchange token, BNB, and set out one of the industry’s most detailed long-term trajectories for the asset. In a research note shared with The Block, Geoffrey Kendrick, the bank’s global head of digital-asset research, argues that the token price could accelerate from roughly $600 today to $1,275 by 2025 and $2,775 by 2028, before “plateauing” through 2029. BNB Could Spike By 360% The path implies a gain of more than 360% from current levels and, crucially, situates the token in what Kendrick calls “a benchmark-like role” inside the wider crypto capital structure. “BNB has traded almost exactly in line with an unweighted basket of Bitcoin and Ethereum since May 2021 in terms of both returns and volatility,” Kendrick wrote. “We expect this relationship to continue to hold, driving the price from around $600 currently to $2,775 by end-2028.” Related Reading: BNB Textbook Support Rebound Sets The Stage for More Upside – See How Standard Chartered’s broader outlook is unabashedly bullish on the majors: Bitcoin is projected to reach $200,000 in 2025 and $500,000 in 2028, while Ethereum is pencilled in at $4,000 and $7,500 over the same horizons. When those forecasts are translated into cross-asset ratios, they reveal subtle shifts in market share. The BTC-BNB ratio—how many BNB one Bitcoin can buy—is expected to tick up from 157 in 2025 to 180 by 2027, then hold steady, implying that Bitcoin’s dollar appreciation is likely to outrun BNB’s. By contrast, the ETH-BNB ratio is seen slipping from 3.14 in 2025 to 2.70 in 2027, signalling that Ethereum may outperform BNB, but more gently than Bitcoin will. Kendrick acknowledges that BNB “may underperform Bitcoin and Ether both in real terms and as measured by market cap in circulation,” yet he contends that its deflationary tokenomics and deep linkage to the world’s largest centralized exchange “support its long-term value.” The research note scrutinises BNB Chain’s architecture. Its “proof-of-staked authority” model rotates just 45 validators every 24 hours—a sharp contrast to Ethereum’s million-plus validator set. Kendrick describes BNB Chain as “highly centralised relative to other chains,” adding that its developer activity has “stagnated” since the 2021 DeFi surge and now trails networks such as Avalanche and Ethereum. Related Reading: BNB Bulls Target $644 As Classic Chart Formation Emerges Even so, forthcoming technical milestones are expected to expand the ecosystem’s resilience. Kendrick cites the recently completed Pascal hard fork and the looming Maxwell upgrade, due in June, as examples of “incremental but meaningful” incentives for developers. On the demand side, the token’s fortunes remain tethered to Binance’s trading engine. Holders receive tiered fee discounts calculated on their token balance and 30-day volume—a mechanically enforced use-case that has so far “helped the BNB Chain retain activity even as competition from other ecosystems like Solana grows,” Kendrick notes. PancakeSwap, the dominant decentralised exchange on BNB Chain, amplifies that liquidity loop. Meanwhile, regular token burns, coupled with the fixed-limit supply, underpin a structural deflation that Standard Chartered says justifies the premium BNB commands on its market-cap-to-GDP valuation screen—currently “rich” by the bank’s preferred metric. At press time, BNB traded at $605. Featured image created with DALL.E, chart from TradingView.com
XRP may have spent the past few weeks struggling to hold above the $2 level, but one analyst believes the recent price action is only in its early stages of a much larger surge. For those who think $3 is a reasonable target, this outlook predicted that the real move could take the altcoin far beyond that mark and possibly much sooner than expected. Multi-Stage Price Path With $10 To $20 The $3 price level has become the psychological and technical battleground for bullish XRP investors this cycle, serving as the most active price point. Earlier in January, the token briefly surged past this level, coming within striking distance of its all-time high of $3.40, before a wave of selling pressure triggered a pullback. Related Reading: XRP Price Forms Rounded Bottom Within Descending Channel, Target Set Above $3 Since then, XRP has seen price corrections that pushed it as low as $1.65 on April 7. Yet, the outlook is once again tilting bullish. XRP has rebounded above $2 and is building a strong base to support another run toward $3. If the current momentum continues to gain traction, reclaiming $3 is not only likely, it could happen within a matter of weeks. One of the boldest predictions comes from a trader known as BarriC, who has laid out a roadmap that extends far beyond the $3 threshold. In a recent post on social media platform X, he forecasted that XRP, now trading near $2.20, will break $3 soon. But his outlook doesn’t stop there. He predicted that by May, the sentiment surrounding XRP could shift so drastically that $5 would be seen as the new “cheap” price for XRP. Taking things a step further, the analyst noted that if the broader crypto market transitions into a full-blown altcoin season, XRP could establish a new short-term trading range between $10 and $20 within the next few months. Utility Run Scenario Places “Cheap” XRP Closer To $1,000 Perhaps the most striking part of BarriC’s analysis comes from what he describes as a “utility run.” This utility run is a scenario where XRP’s real-world use cases as a bridge cryptocurrency start to gain adoption and reflect in its price. Under such conditions, the term “cheap XRP” would apply to prices below $1,000. Related Reading: XRP Price Flashes Symmetrical Triangle From 2017, A Repeat Could Send It as Flying To $30 At the time of writing, XRP is trading at $2.14, up by 1.4% in the past 24 hours. As ultra-bullish as it might seem, the analyst’s price prediction isn’t surprising, as the cryptocurrency has been subjected to similar bullish outlooks in the past few days. Beyond bullish price targets, a few analysts now believe that XRP will flip both Ethereum and Bitcoin in the coming months. One such example is analyst Axel Rodd, who cited the breakdown in Bitcoin dominance as a reason why XRP will flip Bitcoin. Similarly, analysts at Standard Chartered recently predicted that the altcoin will flip Ethereum in market cap by 2028. Featured image from Adobe Stock, chart from Tradingview.com
The passage of the Genius Act in the U.S., expected in coming months, will further legitimize the stablecoin industry, the report said.
Standard Chartered Research has unveiled a bold forecast that places XRP above Ethereum in market cap within the next five years, underscoring what it describes as a multi-year price rally for the token. The projections, shared by Geoffrey Kendrick, Standard Chartered’s global head of digital assets research, map out annual target levels for XRP, Bitcoin, and Ethereum through 2029. They also indicate a set of key ratios that measure the relative strength of XRP compared to its more established peers. XRP, BTC And ETH Price Predictions In 2025, XRP is expected to reach $5.50, while Bitcoin is forecasted to soar to $200,000 and Ethereum to $4,000. This sets a BTC-XRP ratio—essentially the number of tokens equivalent in value to one Bitcoin—at roughly 39,500. Ethereum would be valued at about 727 times the price of XRP in the same year. Moving into 2026, XRP’s target jumps to $8.00, an almost 45% increase, while Bitcoin is projected to climb to $300,000 and Ethereum to $5,000. The BTC-XRP and ETH-XRP ratios slightly rise and fall respectively, suggesting that while Bitcoin continues to outpace XRP in relative terms, XRP is gaining ground on Ethereum. Related Reading: This Analyst Correctly Called The XRP Price Crash, Here Are The Next Targets By 2027, XRP is expected to trade at $10.40, Bitcoin at $400,000, and Ethereum at $6,000. While XRP’s price nearly doubles from its 2025 level, the BTC-XRP and ETH-XRP ratios (42,000 and 577 respectively) confirm a tightening of the gap, particularly versus Ethereum, where XRP shows stronger relative performance. In 2028, XRP hits its peak in this forecast at $12.50. Bitcoin reaches $500,000 and Ethereum continues its linear ascent to $7,500. Despite the increase, XRP still lags behind in proportional gains to Bitcoin, with the BTC-XRP ratio ticking up to 43,000. However, the ETH-XRP ratio moves slightly higher to 600, signaling that Ethereum begins to regain a bit of ground against XRP. Interestingly, by 2029, Kendrick is projecting a slight decline for XRP to $12.25. Meanwhile, the Standard Chartered analyst predicts Bitcoin to remain flat at $500,000, while Ethereum holds steady at $7,500. Notably, the ETH-XRP ratio increases slightly to 612, and BTC-XRP to 44,500, reflecting a modest erosion of XRP’s relative strength in the final stretch. Still, compared to 2025, XRP ends the forecast period stronger in relative terms against Ethereum, as shown by the ETH-XRP ratio dropping from 727 to 612. XRP Will Flip Ethereum Kendrick’s prediction of XRP overtaking Ethereum in total market cap represents one of the report’s most attention-grabbing assertions. “By the end of 2028 we see XRP’s market cap overtaking Ethereum’s,” he said in a message to The Block. Kendrick attributes this upward trajectory to a confluence of factors, including regulatory developments, growing institutional adoption, and expanding tokenization use cases. He specifically cites Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse’s announcement that the US Securities and Exchange Commission has dropped its appeal in the long-running case. According to Kendrick, this outcome was anticipated in the aftermath of a crypto-friendly stance from Donald Trump’s administration, which he says paved the way for a more favorable regulatory environment. He also expects the SEC to approve an XRP spot ETF by Q3 2025, with possible inflows of up to $8 billion in the first year of listing. Related Reading: XRP Confirms Head And Shoulders Breakdown: How Low Can It Go? Kendrick argues that the token’s fundamental utility in cross-border and cross-currency payments aligns with one of the most rapidly growing use cases in the digital asset space. He observes that stablecoin transaction volumes have surged by roughly 50% each year and, if that growth is mirrored by XRP, the token’s price could climb steadily over the coming years. In parallel, Ripple is moving deeper into tokenization efforts, including the development of tokenized US Treasury bill funds and its own USD-backed stablecoin, RLUSD, which Kendrick believes could bolster XRP’s position further. “XRP’s blockchain, the XRP Ledger, is a payments chain and may become a tokenisation chain,” he said. Despite these promising signs, Kendrick acknowledges that the developer ecosystem remains relatively small compared to those of Ethereum and other major blockchains, which could present a challenge to widespread adoption. Moreover, the token’s low-fee structure, while an attractive feature for payments, might limit its ability to capture additional value from network usage. Notably, Kendrick recently also released an optimistic note about Avalanche’s native token AVAX, projecting it could surge to $250 by 2029. His outlook on Ethereum, however, is less enthusiastic; he recently slashed his 2025 Ether price target by 60% to $4,000 and described ether as an “identified loser,” while championing Bitcoin and AVAX as “identified winners.” At press time, XRP traded at $1.807. Featured image created with DALL.E, chart from TradingView.com