Galaxy's Research Chief Capitulates on Bullish Bitcoin Call After Tuesday's Plunge
Bitcoin's price target for the year-end has been slashed to $120,000 from $185,000 by Alex Thorn of Galaxy Digital, citing evolving cyclical dynamics, reduced investor interest, and competing narratives like gold and AI. Other analysts expressed cautious optimism, with Standard Chartered's Geoffrey Kendrick proposing a phased dip-buying strategy amid market volatility. Bitcoin bounced back above $103,000 on Wednesday following a sharp drop below $99,000, while Ethereum rebounded 10% from recent lows. Altcoins like Hyperliquid and Zcash led gains with 6% and 10%, respectively, and crypto-related equities showed moderate recovery with Coinbase and MicroStrategy posting minor gains.
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Analyst Revises Bitcoin Year-End Price Target
Contrarian bulls might be taking some heart as at least one well-followed analyst is throwing in the towel on his hefty year-end price target for bitcoin (BTC). Alex Thorn, head of research at Mike Novogratz's Galaxy Digital, wrote in a Wednesday morning note to clients: "While bitcoin’s structural investment case remains strong, cyclical dynamics have evolved." He pointed to factors such as whale distribution, fading interest in BTC-adjacent investments, rotation to competing investment narratives (e.g., gold, artificial intelligence, stablecoins), and treasury company "malaise" as contributing headwinds. As a result, Thorn slashed his year-end price target for bitcoin to $120,000 from a previous $185,000.
Alternative Analyst Perspectives on Bitcoin
At least two other analysts have offered a more moderate outlook. Charlie Morris, chief investment officer at ByteTree, argued: "There is no need to get too bearish on BTC at this point." He highlighted the $100,000 level as potentially a major support level, noting it has been tested on multiple occasions: "Bad things can happen, so we shouldn’t count on it, but BTC is in no way overbought and is underhyped." Meanwhile, Geoffrey Kendrick from Standard Chartered saw opportunity in volatility, suggesting a phased dip-buying approach:
- Buy 25% of a target position now.
- Add another 25% if BTC closes above $103,000 this Friday.
- Allocate the final 50% if the BTC-gold price ratio moves back above 30 (currently sitting at 26).
Bitcoin Stages Modest Recovery
On Wednesday morning, Bitcoin staged a modest bounce above $103,000, recovering some of the losses from Tuesday’s steep selloff, which had pushed prices below $99,000 for the first time since June. The limited rebound brought some relief to investors, though market dynamics remain turbulent.
Ethereum and Altcoins Show Recovery
Ethereum (ETH) showed significant recovery, rebounding almost 10% from its Tuesday low when forced liquidations caused the price to drop to just above $3,000. By Wednesday morning, ETH was trading at $3,340, marking a 10% recovery from its worst levels, though it remains down 6% over the past 24 hours.
Among altcoins, Hyperliquid (HYPL) and Zcash (ZEC) led the recovery, posting gains of 6% and 10%, respectively.
Crypto-Related Equities Show Tepid Gains
Crypto-related equities opened Wednesday's session with tepid gains following the major losses of the previous day. Coinbase (COIN) gained 1.9%, while MicroStrategy (MSTR) posted a 1.4% increase. These modest rebounds provided some relief to investors after a turbulent start to the week.