After a rather unpleasant 3 months which saw the price of Bitcoin fall to less than half its all-time high, the gold standard of cryptocurrency has finally shown signs of reversal. The market leader is currently trading around $9200, but can Bitcoin ever reach and surpass its previous highs? Sure it can — here’s how.
‘Better Security Infrastructure’
As suggested by Forbes, the first thing which could send Bitcoin skyrocketing is increased adoption as a conventional currency — meaning as both a store of value and medium of exchange. However, for this to happen, more secure and user-friendly infrastructure must be built. Christian Ferri, President and CEO of BlockStar, explained:
Assuming Bitcoin will be used as [a] store of value going forward (e.g. digital gold), a better security infrastructure overarching the entire crypto ecosystem will be needed for people to place trust in this new financial medium and start using it. Once this happens, more people will jump in, so a scalable infrastructure will be crucial.
Price Stabilization
Ferri also noted to Forbes that security enhancements alone aren’t enough to push Bitcoin into the mainstream as a viable currency. In order to act as legitimate tender, the price needs to be stabilized by protocol enhancements. He explained:
If new enhancements are done to the protocol to allow Bitcoin (or a fork of thereof) to become a medium for everyday transactions (e.g. buy your Latte with Bitcoin), we’ll need a stability mechanism in place, on top of security and scalability mentioned above. This way that Latte won’t cost you $5 today and $50 tomorrow.
Institutional Investors
Thirdly, the virtual currency needs big money to come in if it ever expects to reach new highs. And by “big money,” we mean institutional investors. Paul A. Taylor, Executive Chairman of Fabric Foundation, told Forbes:
The influx of money from institutions putting money into crypto index funds will cause a cascading [effect], causing the herd to rush in.
Darren Marble of CrowdfundX agrees, noting:
At this stage, institutional investors hold the key to Bitcoin’s growth. Concerns around liquidity, security, counterparty risk and custody of assets have so far prevented institutional investors from buying Bitcoin on decentralized exchanges.
Regulated Exchanges
It’s a well-known fact that big-money investors have begun dipping their toes in Bitcoin’s waters — but for institutional investment to really come into play, regulated exchanges need to launch cryptocurrency offerings. Marble told Forbes:
Only when regulated exchanges — such as tZERO, Coinlist, or even NASDAQ — go live with their secondary crypto trading platforms, will the smart money begin investing directly into Bitcoin. Once this happens, the floodgates will open and we will see a new paradigm emerge; the crypto market cap will exceed $1 billion, and lead by new all-time highs of Bitcoin.
ETFs
Finally, the last major thing which could push the daddy of cryptocurrency to new highs is the launching of cryptocurrency-related exchange-traded funds — otherwise known as ETFs. Chris Kline, co-founder and COO of BitcoinIRA.com, told Forbes:
Crypto-related exchange-traded funds may allow for simpler trading through brokerage accounts, which would also contribute to hiked up prices for Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. The writing is on the wall; with so much momentum surrounding Bitcoin and other digital currencies, in my opinion, it’s only a matter of time before prices rebound again.
Did we miss anything? Do you think BTC will revisit and surpass its previous highs? Let us know in the comments below!
Images courtesy of Bitcoinist archives and Adobe Stock.