As the crypto market matures, the relative strength between Ethereum and Bitcoin is becoming one of the most discussed narratives. The ETH ecosystem is entering a new phase of growth, fueled by scaling solutions, rising staking participation, and a more efficient supply structure. These improvements are steadily reinforcing the ETH fundamentals and long-term utility within decentralized finance and beyond. Ethereum, Bitcoin Recovery Depends On Adoption And Market Rotation The debate around whether Ethereum can reclaim its 2021 highs against Bitcoin is gaining renewed momentum as institutional voices turn increasingly optimistic. Crypto analyst Walter Bloomberg revealed on X that Geoff Kendrick of Standard Chartered remains strongly bullish on ETH despite its prolonged underperformance against BTC. Related Reading: Ethereum’s Price Pulls Back Close To $1,900, But Large Holders Remain Unfazed Geoff Kendrick argues that the current disconnection between ETH’s strong fundamentals and its weak price performance is only temporary. Meanwhile, ETH has experienced a significant drawdown to $2,100, a 57% since August 2025, with the ETH/BTC ratio declining by 37%. However, the on-chain transaction levels and total value locked (TVL) across the ecosystem have reportedly remained near all-time highs. Standard Chartered reportedly compares the current ETH situation to a major technology company, Amazon, during the 2021 dot-com crash, suggesting ETH could bounce back. The bank maintains aggressive long-term targets, projecting Ethereum to reach $4,000 by 2026 and potentially reaching $40,000 by 2030. A move of that scale would also push the ETH/BTC ratio back toward its 2021 peak. The bullish thesis is largely driven by ETH’s dominant 50-65% position in stablecoins and tokenized real-world assets (RWAs), with both sectors expected to experience massive growth. Macro Technical Levels Continue To Shape ETH/BTC Direction A partner with sizeprop known as Scient on X has mentioned that the broader Ethereum and Bitcoin macro prediction has now completed a textbook pattern, closely following the plan mapped out at the February lows. After a sustained 3-month rally, the price delivered a clean bearish retest of the daily market structure shift (MSS) and breaker zone, before rotating lower to sweep liquidity at the February range lows and fill the fair value gap. This move represents a textbook technical execution of the thesis. Related Reading: This 1 Chart Explains Why Bitcoin Is Winning And Ethereum Is Losing Right Now Currently, with price tapping into the critical 0.75 Fibonacci zone, the weekly timeframe is beginning to show early signs of a potential bounce. If ETH/BTC is going to establish a meaningful bottom, this would be the area where it will happen. On the lower timeframes, the 12-hour chart reveals an important development. The price has been holding its lows quietly for over a week, with the Relative Strength Index (RSI) printing bullish divergence, often a signal of classic accumulation at a key level. Scient noted that the confirmation of a sustained move higher is still pending, and the current setup places ETH/BTC at a decisive moment. Either way, the coming days are likely pivotal for determining the next major direction. Featured image from iStock, chart from Tradingview.com
Ethereum (ETH) has followed Bitcoin (BTC) and much of the wider crypto market lower over the past 48 hours, dropping below the key $2,000 support level and reigniting concerns among some investors that a longer bear phase could be underway. Even with the recent slide, Standard Chartered’s Digital Assets Research Head, Geoff Kendrick, says the bank is not backing away from its bullish long-term outlook for Ethereum. Ethereum Price Will Catch Up In a note to investors on Thursday, Kendrick reaffirmed Standard Chartered’s core projection for Ethereum’s performance over the next four years, including its end-2030 target of $40,000 for ETH. He linked the current weakness to something investors may eventually look back on as a confusing, even misleading, signal. Rather than treating the price drop as proof that the network is weakening, Kendrick argued that Ethereum’s usage metrics are continuing to improve even as the token’s market value loses ground. Related Reading: Hyperliquid (HYPE) In The Spotlight: Grayscale’s Latest Report Says What Comes Next To illustrate the gap between price action and underlying progress, Kendrick drew a comparison to Amazon during the 2001 dot-com bust. His argument echoes a line often attributed to Jeff Bezos: that while a company’s stock can go the wrong way, “everything inside the company” can still be moving in the right direction. Kendrick specifically said that Ethereum will “catch up” to those improving internal metrics and suggested that investors are effectively watching a delay between operational strength and market pricing. ETH Upside Signals Standard Chartered’s view leans heavily on measurable indicators that Kendrick says support Ethereum’s position in key parts of the crypto economy. One of the bank’s central points is Ethereum’s role in stablecoins. Kendrick noted that 54% of all stablecoins are currently issued on the network. He also said stablecoins make up around one-third of all Ethereum transactions in 2026 year-to-date. Based on that momentum, Standard Chartered projects the stablecoin market cap could increase sixfold from current levels by the end of 2028. Related Reading: Perfect Crypto Week In Texas: 6 Candidates Backed, 0 Misses—What To Track Next A second major pillar of the bullish case is Ethereum’s position in tokenized real-world assets (RWAs). Kendrick said Ethereum hosts around 62% of RWAs and about 68% of active on-chain loans. He projected that the non-stablecoin RWA sector could grow about 50 times to reach $2 trillion by the end of 2028. For Standard Chartered, tokenized RWAs are likely to expand in a way that brings Ethereum a significant share of the activity. Kendrick’s projections suggest Ethereum could still capture roughly half to two-thirds of both tokenized assets and the related category of growth, with Ethereum hosting an estimated 50% to 65% of those segments. Kendrick’s analysis keeps the forecast unchanged: ETH at $4,000 by the end of 2026 and then $40,000 by the end of 2030. In the same reaffirmation, Standard Chartered lays out an extended path through the intervening years, projecting $10,000 by end-2027, $18,000 by end-2028, and ultimately $40,000 by end-2030. At the time of writing, ETH was trading at $1,991, having retraced by 5% in the weekly timeframe. This means that the altcoin is now trading 59% below its all-time high of $4,964, reached last year. Featured image created with OpenArt; chart from TradingView.com
Ethereum could outpace Bitcoin by a wide margin over the next four years — at least according to one of the most bullish forecasts to come out of traditional banking. That is the view from Geoff Kendrick, Global Head of Digital Assets Research at Standard Chartered, who laid out the projection in a recent podcast appearance. Ethereum’s Potential Gain Towers Over Bitcoin’s While Bitcoin grabs the bigger headline number, the math actually favors Ethereum. Kendrick’s base case puts Bitcoin at $500,000 by 2030 — roughly 7.5 times its current price of $66,400. Ethereum, sitting at $2,034, would need to hit $40,000 to meet his target. That works out to about 20 times its current value. In other words, Ethereum holders would see nearly three times the relative return compared to Bitcoin investors, if the forecast holds. Related Reading: Bitcoin Stumbles Hard: The Worst Q1 In Years Raises Big Questions Kendrick flagged the ETH/BTC ratio as one indicator to watch. That ratio currently sits at around 0.03. His outlook has it climbing to 0.04 in the near term, a signal that Ethereum would be gaining ground on Bitcoin in relative terms. He also offered a more immediate checkpoint: if Bitcoin gets back to $100,000 by the end of 2026, Ethereum should be trading near $4,000. That would represent gains of roughly 50% for Bitcoin and 95% for Ethereum from where both assets currently stand. Global Head of Digital Assets Research at Standard Chartered: “I’ve got $500K Bitcoin by 2030 and $40K Ethereum by 2030 – a massive outperformance.” That’s ~20x on $ETH from here. pic.twitter.com/p7dFwPrTzG — Milk Road (@MilkRoad) April 1, 2026 Banks Are Choosing Ethereum First One reason why Kendrick believes in the bullishness of Ethereum is that the financial sector has been joining the blockchain revolution. From Kendrick’s point of view, large asset management firms and banks usually begin their blockchain ventures by developing products based on Ethereum since it has a reputation for safety and reliability. For instance, BlackRock started creating blockchain products using Ethereum first before venturing into other blockchain networks. This pattern, Kendrick argues, gives Ethereum a durable edge. As more institutions follow the same playbook, demand for the network could build steadily through the end of the decade. He described this as the “first phase” of real-world adoption playing out primarily on Ethereum, even if activity eventually spreads to competing blockchains. Related Reading: XRP Could Soon Enter Arizona’s Treasury — Here’s What’s Happening Network Usage Seen As A Price Driver Beyond institutional adoption, Kendrick pointed to raw network activity as a key factor in his price outlook. Rising transaction fees on Ethereum-based applications are seen as a gauge of demand. As stablecoins, decentralized finance, and tokenized real-world assets continue to grow on the network, that increased usage could push the token’s value higher. The forecast was shared during an interview on the Milk Road podcast with host John Gillen. Standard Chartered has not publicly released a formal research note tied to these specific figures, but Kendrick’s comments drew wide attention across the crypto community following the appearance. Featured image from Meta, chart from TradingView
Standard Chartered’s Global Head of Digital Assets Research Geoffrey Kendrick said Ethereum could climb to $40,000 by 2030 and outperform Bitcoin along the way, arguing that the next wave of tokenization, stablecoin growth, and institutional blockchain buildout is likely to land first on Ethereum. Speaking in a Milk Road interview with John Gillen, Kendrick tied his ETH thesis directly to how traditional finance is approaching on-chain infrastructure. His argument was not that Ethereum wins because of narrative momentum, but because it looks like the safest place for banks, asset managers, and large institutions to start building. Why Ethereum Could Outperform Bitcoin Back in January, Kendrick had published a report titled Ethereum outperformance expected. In the interview, he acknowledged that ETH has struggled on price since then, but said the underlying setup remains intact. “The interesting part here for Ethereum is as tradfi gets involved, tradfi is okay to build stuff on Ethereum,” he said. “It’ll be very safe to say I’m going to build on Ethereum layer one, right? Because it’s never gone down. So I think a lot of this stuff in its first instance happens on Ethereum layer 1.” Related Reading: Ethereum Price Falls Below Psychological $2,000 Support — What Next? He pointed to BlackRock’s rollout strategy as a model for how that adoption could unfold. In Kendrick’s view, institutions are likely to launch first on Ethereum mainnet, then expand to other chains and layer-2s later. That sequencing matters, because he sees activity flowing to the network before value disperses elsewhere. Kendrick said he increasingly views protocol and application fees relative to market cap as one of the more useful ways to think about ETH valuation. More activity in the Ethereum ecosystem, he argued, should translate into a higher token price. “I think that means ETH outperforms now, let’s say for the foreseeable actually,” he said. He added that the ETH/BTC ratio, currently around 0.03 by his framing, could rise to 0.04 this year. Longer term, he said, “I’ve got $500,000 Bitcoin by 2030 and $40,000 Ethereum by 2030. So, a massive outperformance, obviously, a massive absolute potential upside from here.” The broader engine behind that call is tokenization. Kendrick said stablecoins could rise from roughly $300 billion today to $2 trillion over the next few years, and argued that this would create knock-on demand for tokenized money market funds. Corporate treasurers, he said, will not want to hold only tokenized cash if the rest of their idle capital remains trapped in slower off-chain systems. “Tomorrow, if you want to get access to stablecoins because of their 24/7 instantaneous, near-free benefits, you want to take all the million dollars onchain,” Kendrick said. “You don’t want to go out of stable coins and back into idiotic fiat, which is ridiculously slow by comparison. Rather, you’d like to have all of your off-chain money market funds onchain as well.” Related Reading: Unknown Wallet Buys $107 Million In Ethereum – Purchase Pattern Points To Bitmine That leads to one of his bigger numerical calls. Tokenized money market funds, which he said are about $10 billion today, could reach $750 billion by the end of 2028. He based that on the assumption that even if only 10% of transactions move into stablecoins over the next few years, a similar share of money market fund exposure would likely need to come on-chain too. He also forecast that other tokenized assets could grow from around $40 billion today to $2 trillion by the end of 2028, describing that as a 50x move in three years. From there, Kendrick sees a path into DeFi. If regulatory clarity improves, he said, traditional finance and DeFi could begin meeting in the middle, with consumer-facing apps using blockchain rails in the background to route cash into products like Aave, Morpho, or Compound. “There’s a huge financial fairness and financial inclusion stuff that I think we circle back to from DeFi,” he said. “Most people won’t know where it’s coming from, but you’ll get that style of stuff, I think, in the next few years.” For Kendrick, that is the core of the Ethereum trade. If tokenized dollars, tokenized funds, and eventually tokenized equities pull institutional liquidity on-chain, the first phase of that buildout is likely to happen where compliance teams are most comfortable. In his telling, that still points to Ethereum. At press time, ETH traded at $2,059. Featured image created with DALL.E, chart from TradingView.com
Standard Chartered’s Geoffrey Kendrick says Bitcoin could still face a final washout to $50,000 before recovering sharply, arguing that the current drawdown looks more like a macro-led tech capitulation than a crypto-specific breakdown. Speaking on Deribit’s Crypto Options Unplugged, Kendrick, the bank’s global head of digital assets research, said he still expects Bitcoin to end the year at $100,000 and reach $500,000 by 2030, even as he warned that the near-term setup remains fragile. “Picking the bottom is always extremely difficult,” Kendrick said, framing the recent selloff as mostly orderly outside a few volatile weeks. He argued that institutional positioning has held up better than many expected, pointing to relatively sticky ETF exposure and continued buying from MicroStrategy even after the stock’s premium to net asset value fell below one. Related Reading: 43% of Bitcoin Supply Is In Loss As Market Nears Bear Territory Still, Kendrick said the market may not be done deleveraging. “I suspect we could still see that final capitulation. Now, it could be macro driven,” he said. “Bitcoin and crypto assets more broadly is still very highly correlated with the Nasdaq.” In his view, weaker earnings from large US tech names over the next few months, combined with a lack of immediate Federal Reserve support, could drag crypto lower alongside equities. That, he said, is what makes the $50,000 level plausible. Kendrick compared the potential move with prior cycle drawdowns, noting that a decline to that zone would still be shallower than the roughly 75% peak-to-trough drop seen in the previous cycle. The key difference this time, he argued, is the absence so far of a major internal crypto failure on the scale of FTX. Why Kendrick Is Long-Term Bullish On Bitcoin Even so, Kendrick’s medium- and long-term thesis remains emphatically bullish. He tied that outlook less to short-term trading flows than to what he sees as a structural shift driven by stablecoins and tokenized real-world assets. Last year, when stablecoins stood around $200 billion, Kendrick projected they could grow to $2 trillion by the end of 2028. He said the market is now closer to $300 billion, with much of that demand coming not from crypto trading but from savings use cases in emerging markets. “What’s replaced it has primarily been savings in emerging markets,” Kendrick said, referring to stablecoins’ original role as on-off ramps for crypto trading. “On my estimate of the $300 billion, about $200 [billion] is for EM savings use case.” He added that much of that capital appears to sit in large wallets and turns over infrequently, suggesting it is being used more as stored value than transactional float. Related Reading: Bitcoin SOPR Ratio Shows Early Capitulation—But Not Full Bottom Yet Kendrick’s broader argument is that this trend could have macro consequences well beyond crypto. If stablecoin issuers absorb close to $1 trillion in additional T-bill demand over the next three years, he said, the US Treasury may respond by shifting issuance toward the front end, flattening the yield curve and reinforcing dollar demand. In his telling, that liquidity effect could eventually become a tailwind for risk assets, including Bitcoin. “I think we go down to, let’s say, $50,000 and back to $100,000 by the end of this year and $500,000 by 2030,” Kendrick said. “Ironically, if stablecoins are massive and Genius Act is as it is, the inflow of cash on liquidity and flattening yield curve and all that sort of stuff becomes massively supportive of Bitcoin medium term.” He extended that optimism across other large-cap crypto assets. Kendrick said he sees Ethereum reaching $40,000 and Solana hitting $2,000 by 2030, with Ethereum benefiting from stablecoin and tokenization activity and Solana from ultra-low-cost transaction flows and micropayments. He also projected tokenized real-world assets could grow from roughly $40 billion today to $2 trillion by the end of 2028. For now, though, Kendrick’s message was less about chasing momentum than about separating market price from underlying adoption. “Pretty much all the underlying metrics, if you like, have been improving,” he said. “Except for the price.” At press time, Bitcoin traded at $70,260. Featured image from YouTube, chart from TradingView.com
Crypto analyst Javon Marks has revealed how Ethereum could recover and possibly break above its current all-time high (ATH) of $4,900. This came as he highlighted a bullish pattern that the altcoin was still maintaining despite the current crypto market downtrend. Ethereum Eyes Rally To ATH Amid Hidden Bull Divergence Pattern In an X post, Javon Mark noted that Ethereum is maintaining a larger Hidden Bull Divergence Pattern. Based on this, he declared that, with a full response, ETH could rally over 140% and even break its current all-time high of $4,900. His accompanying chart showed that the altcoin could rally to $5,000 by mid-year. Related Reading: Can Ethereum Price Still Hit $7,600 In 2026? Here Are The Odds His prediction comes as Ethereum continues to struggle below the psychological $2,000 level. Despite this, Marks assured that there is still a strong possibility of a larger bull reversal in the works, as ETH has recently shown a positive response to the Regular Bullish Divergence pattern. The analyst has also predicted that the altcoin could still reach $8,500 as part of the broader macro picture. Amid this bullish prediction for Ethereum, it is worth noting that Wall Street giant Standard Chartered has lowered its year-end target for ETH from $7,000 to $4,000, indicating that there is also the possibility that the altcoin won’t reach a new ATH this year. The bank also predicted that ETH could still drop to as low as $1,300 before it recovers. Standard Chartered cited the decline in institutional demand as the major reason for lowering its Ethereum price target. Like the Bitcoin ETFs, the ETH ETFs have continued to record significant net outflows. SoSo Value data shows that these funds are currently on course to record their fourth consecutive month of net outflows. How ETH Could Still Drop To As Low As $1,136 In an X post, crypto analyst Trader Tardigrade warned that a Bearish Pennant was forming, which could send Ethereum to as low as $1,136. The analyst noted that ETH is consolidating inside converging trendlines after the initial drop and that the pattern suggests continuation downward. Related Reading: Ethereum Whales Are Not Dead: The $400 Million Move That Shows What’s Going On Trader Tardigrade further warned that a drop below the current range could trigger a sharp move down, sending ETH to the breakdown target of $1,136. However, the analyst appears to remain bullish on the altcoin in the long term. He had earlier stated that ETH was repeating a similar pattern from previous cycles in which a breakdown follows a consolidation before a recovery. This time, he predicts that Ethereum could rally to as high as $7,000 once it begins to recover. At the time of writing, the Ethereum price is trading at around $1,968, up in the last 24 hours, according to data from CoinMarketCap. Featured image from Freepik, chart from Tradingview.com
The British financial giant Standard Chartered sharply reduced its price outlook for XRP, the fourth-largest cryptocurrency. The company trimmed its end-of-2026 target by 65% following the severe downturn in the broader crypto market in the past month. The revision comes even as the altcoin posted a modest 2% rebound over the past week, trading around $1.47 per token at the time of writing. Despite that short-term recovery, the bank’s digital assets team now believes the token is unlikely to reach a new all-time high this year. New XRP Price Prediction The updated forecast was first reported on Monday by DL News, with Geoffrey Kendrick, Standard Chartered’s global head of digital assets research, outlining the changes in a note to investors. Related Reading: Can XRP Hold Above $1? Token Tumbles 11% as Breakdown Fuels Crash Concerns Kendrick, who leads the bank’s crypto research efforts, acknowledged that recent market conditions have forced a broad reassessment of price expectations across the sector. “Recent price action for digital assets has been challenging, to say the least,” Kendrick wrote. “We expect further declines near-term, and we lower our forecasts across the asset class.” Under the revised outlook, Standard Chartered now expects XRP to reach $2.80 by the end of 2026, a substantial cut from its previous $8 projection. The earlier target had been issued in December, when the bank took a far more optimistic stance. At that time, Kendrick pointed to increasing regulatory clarity surrounding XRP’s status as a financial asset, along with progress toward exchange-traded fund (ETF) products, as key catalysts that could drive significant price appreciation. Broad Forecast Cuts Across Major Tokens The $8 forecast was made roughly two and a half months after the sharp market crash on October 10, when sentiment had begun to stabilize. However, as February draws to a close, the broader crypto market has yet to mount a sustained recovery. That prolonged weakness has prompted Standard Chartered to reassess not only XRP but the wider digital asset landscape. Related Reading: Bitcoin Should Be Flying—Instead, Quantum Risk Keeps It Grounded: Analyst Bitcoin’s (BTC) expected price has been reduced from $150,000 to $100,000. Ethereum’s (ETH) forecast has been revised down from $7,000 to $4,000, while Solana’s (SOL) target has been cut from $250 to $135. Featured image from OpenArt, chart from TradingView.com
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.