The price of Bitcoin exceeded USD 104,000, and Standard Chartered regretted its projection.
The British bank revised its forecast for the cryptocurrency after a rapid rebound, driven by institutional flows and a renewed market narrative.
Bitcoin surpassed the mark of USD 100,000, rendering the most optimistic forecasts of major banks obsolete. Geoffrey Kendrick, head of digital assets at Standard Chartered, publicly acknowledged that his previous target of USD 120,000 for the second quarter of 2025 'may be too low,' in a context where the reigning cryptocurrency approaches six digits and institutional appetite shows no signs of exhaustion.
🏁🚩🏁A rally faster than expected▫️▫️▫️🏎️
The recent surge in Bitcoin, which brought it close to USD 101,000 with a daily increase of 4.5%, surprised even the most optimistic analysts. Kendrick had anticipated just a month ago that BTC would reach USD 120,000 before July, driven by a strategic asset reallocation outside the United States and the accumulation of 'whales.' However, the pace of events forced a revision of those projections.
💢The new engine: institutional flows▫️🔸▫️
The dominant narrative around Bitcoin has changed, according to Kendrick. If it was previously analyzed for its correlation with risk assets or its role as a refuge amid macroeconomic uncertainty, today 'it's all about flows.' In the past three weeks, spot Bitcoin ETFs in the United States received inflows of USD 5.3 billion, reflecting unprecedented institutional interest.
Among the protagonists of this movement is Strategy, which already controls 2.6% of the total Bitcoin supply and plans to further increase its exposure with a fundraising of up to USD 84 billion. Additionally, institutions such as the Swiss National Bank and sovereign funds from the Middle East have increased their participation in Bitcoin-linked products, consolidating its status as a global macro asset.
🚸⚠️☢️Regulatory signs and institutional adoption▫️🔸▫️
The regulatory context also favors optimism. U.S. states, such as New Hampshire, have passed laws for the creation of strategic Bitcoin reserves, and Ivy League universities have started investing in cryptocurrency ETFs. These moves reinforce the perception that Bitcoin is gaining legitimacy and acceptance in traditionally conservative circles.