According to new global research by London-based Nickel Digital Asset Management (Nickel), Europe’s award-winning, regulated digital assets hedge fund manager institutional investors and wealth managers are confident Bitcoin and Ethereum will sustain their strong performance for the rest of this year.
The study with institutional investors and wealth managers in the US, UK, Germany, Switzerland, Singapore, Brazil and the United Arab Emirates who collectively manage around $3.5 trillion in assets, found 97% of investors believe Bitcoin will end the year with prices higher than current levels while almost all (99%) expect Ethereum to continue to grow in price.
The optimism about the year ahead is feeding through into longer-term support for Bitcoin growth – 78% believe Bitcoin will hit the landmark $100,000 valuation with 57% predicting the price will be achieved within five years.
Nickel’s study was conducted when Bitcoin was around $30,000 and Ethereum around $1,900. Just 3% of investors questioned believe Bitcoin will end the year lower than $30,000 and only 1% expect Ethereum’s price to fall back during the rest of the year.
The strong performance of the two key cryptocurrencies is expected to boost demand for altcoins underlining the restored confidence in the digital assets sector. Around nine out of out 10 (89%) questioned believe Bitcoin and Ethereum growth will fuel demand for altcoins.
Institutional investors questioned believe the successful launch of a Bitcoin Spot ETF could further boost the sector – around two out of three (64%) say it would have an impact on the price of Bitcoin with 20% forecasting a significant impact.