As we approach Q4 2024, some analysts predict continued price increases. Bitcoin Bitcoin
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And the broader cryptocurrency market, driven by institutional adoption and macroeconomic factors.
“We expect digital assets to continue to see growth in Q4 amid macroeconomic changes and institutional adoption, and as sovereign balance sheets come under pressure, investors will look to long-term hedges like bitcoin,” Gabriel Selby, senior research analyst at CF Benchmark, wrote in a note to The Block.
Institutional investors will be a key driver of this growth, Lee added. “MicroStrategy continued to sell bonds in September to buy more bitcoin, and bitcoin ETFs continued to see net inflows following the rate cut. This suggests that institutions are optimistic about the market outlook. With continued institutional buying, bitcoin is likely to hit its previous high,” Lee said.
Changes in the cryptocurrency environment in the fourth quarter
Selby noted that the U.S. regulatory environment could undergo significant changes after the November 5 election, creating an environment conducive to cryptocurrency innovation. “We are seeing conditions that foster investor confidence and facilitate capital formation,” he said.
“Layer 2 scaling solutions are emerging to meet the growing demand for Ethereum blockchain space, and traditional financial institutions are exploring tokenization of real-world assets on Ethereum,” Selby added, adding that there is a potential intersection with another technology that is attracting investors: “The advent of generative AI and the resulting demand for GPU compute power could aid in the democratization of access to high-quality compute resources through decentralized physical infrastructure networks (DePINs).”
In 2024, BlackRock launched a tokenized money market mutual fund on the Ethereum network. Selby noted that this development is just the beginning of the potential for tokenized assets to be integrated with decentralized finance (DeFi), where they can be used as collateral for stocks, bonds, and real estate, or traded on decentralized exchanges.
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