Bitcoin’s institutional shift drives Bernstein’s US$150,000 call
Bitcoin has likely reached a floor and could rise to US$150,000 by the end of 2026, according to Bernstein, which argues the cryptocurrency is being reshaped by a steady shift toward institutional ownership and financing.
The Wall Street firm says a transition from a market once dominated by retail speculation to one increasingly anchored by exchange-traded funds, corporate balance sheets and structured capital is altering how Bitcoin behaves. And it’s making downturns less disorderly and potentially extending the current cycle.
Bitcoin’s recent performance offers a test of that thesis. Prices, currently trading around US$70,000, fell by more than 50 per cent from their peak, yet the selloff didn’t trigger the kind of cascading liquidation seen in earlier cycles.
“Bitcoin will continue to outperform driven by strong institutional demand from ETFs which have been resilient through the market correction (year-to-date outflows have reversed) and new institutional on-ramps from banks offering Bitcoin financial services,” the firm said in a Tuesday report.
“Bitcoin market structure has matured” relative to earlier boom-and-bust cycles, Bernstein added.
Companies such as Michael Saylor’s Strategy Inc. have continued to accumulate Bitcoin through the downturn, using equity and preferred securities to fund purchases. This growing link between crypto markets and capital markets is creating a more persistent source of demand — and a different set of risks, Bernstein says.
