Standard Chartered: Bitcoin to Plunge to $5K

The cryptocurrency market is volatile. Prices are like the wind - unpredictable in behavior - subject to factors such as market trends, regulatory updates, and consumer behavior. There are also the aftereffects of occasional events such as the FTX collapse; experts believe it will “impact cryptocurrencies well into the future and could drag down broader markets”.

If the total market price of all cryptocurrencies experienced a 64% drop in one year (from nearly $3 trillion in Nov 2021 to $841 billion presently), then predicting the performance of digital coins may well be an undoable task. Until it is done.

Here are five forecasts for crypto in the new year, supported by opinions from experienced crypto enthusiasts:

Crypto Winter Will Last Until 2024

David Marcus, a stakeholder with prior roles at Meta and PayPal, believes that the crypto winter may not lift this year. In a round-up blog post, he attributed this to the involvement of “unscrupulous players” who have exploited the decentralized nature of cryptocurrency.

“It’ll take a couple of years for the market to recover from the abuse of unscrupulous players, and for responsible regulation to come through. Consumer trust is also going to take a few years to rebuild, but ultimately I believe this will prove to be a beneficial reset for legitimate industry players over the long run.”

There is also evidence that the crypto market is cycling through four years, previously observed in 2017 and 2021, with this year being the year of the bear market. The latter months of the year could usher in the bull season, marked by exciting price surges and led by new players in the industry.

Bitcoin Will Surge Upwards to $30k

“Bitcoin will pump above $30k,” says Eric Wall, Chief Investment Officer at crypto hedge fund Arcane Assets. He opines that this will happen in 2023, though he didn’t give a specific timeline. He suggests that the lowest drop Bitcoin will experience is $15.4k, which is only about 8% shy of its current market price.

Wall’s opinion is seconded by Davinci Jeremie who says that Bitcoin will hit $35,000 in 2023, a 212% rise.

Bitcoin To Plunge To $5k

Standard Chartered says Bitcoin could drop by over 70% in a rather surprising prediction. Though a $5000 market price looks impractical, Standard Chartered believes that the financial market will tend away from being bullish. Investors could consider gold as a viable alternative to crypto, especially in light of FTX’s recent collapse and bankruptcy declaration. Robertsen, the global head of research at Standard Chartered, believes that the value of gold will surge “as cryptocurrencies fall further.”

FTX Collapse Will Impact Crypto Partnerships

Did the FTX scandal exploit the decentralized nature of cryptocurrency? Certainly. NYSE President Lynn Martin thinks investors will hesitate to dive into crypto. The emphasis on transparency and regulation in the market will ring through the year, and the extreme volatility of these digital coins will scare potential investors from partnerships.

Business leaders offering an array of services to crypto agencies may also pull out of existing agreements. Mazar, which provided auditing services for Binance and Crypto.com, declared their unwillingness to pursue further business actions with crypto organizations. Many organizations may tow this path in the new year.

High Performing Meme Coins Will Drop Some More

Dogecoin, the leader of the pack of meme coins, could drop by up to half of its present value. Having experienced its glory season in 2021, Dogecoin has plunged by about 90% of its all-time peak value. Given that Dogecoin offers no unique selling points asides from being a convenient payment coin, the meme coin may be well-positioned for further depreciation.

The uncertainties of the crypto market make these predictions just that - predictions. It will be of little shock if premium digital coins skyrocket in price as we approach the end of Q1. Should it happen, it’ll be fun to see experts evaluate and scrutinize the developments.

Looking to invest in crypto? It is always a good idea to diversify your portfolio and to invest only what you can afford to lose.