Bitcoin is currently in a different league than in 2017. Back then, it was a toy for geeks, but today it is an asset that sits in the portfolios of BlackRock and Fidelity. The 2024 halving has reduced rewards for miners, making BTC even scarcer. Institutional investors are pouring billions through ETFs, while countries like El Salvador are experimenting with $BTC as a currency. These are real growth drivers, and they make forecasts like $200k from Standard Chartered or $250k from Hayes seem not so crazy.

But there is a "but." Regulators around the world are sharpening their teeth on crypto. In the US, the SEC could tighten rules for ETFs or exchanges at any moment. In China, mining is still banned. And then there's geopolitics. If a new crisis occurs (for example, escalation of conflicts or a spike in inflation), investors might flee not to BTC, but to gold or the dollar. Million-dollar forecasts ignore these risks, painting only a rosy picture.