Bitcoin came within touching distance of this big milestone on Tuesday after briefly breaking $48,000.
Bitcoin could hit $50,000 this week as market mania triggered by Tesla’s massive crypto buy-in continues, analysts have claimed.
After hitting a peak of $48,003.72 in early trading on Tuesday, BTC has cooled to $45,928.93 at the time of writing — with the world’s biggest cryptocurrency taking a breather following on from its largest daily candle in history.
Simon Peters, a market analyst at eToro, told The Independent:
“The world is moving online more and more, and Bitcoin sits at the heart of online transactions, and with this kind of endorsement from a multibillion-dollar company, it's likely the price will hit $50,000 by the end of the week.”
Of course, there are those that argue Bitcoin is actually rather ill-suited to the world of online payments. The network can only handle about five transactions per second — and volatility in its price means BTC probably better serves as a store of value. (As a case in point, a man who bought two pizzas for 10,000 BTC in 2010 has missed out on a $460 million fortune.)
The big question is whether other major corporations will follow Tesla’s lead by snapping up Bitcoin. Some treasury experts are doubtful that the electric vehicle maker will start a new trend, with Treasury Partners managing director Jerry Klein telling the Financial Times:
“I don’t think there is a case to be made for investing corporate cash in a risky asset like Bitcoin, where they could experience significant declines.”
Then again, the likes of MicroStrategy CEO Michael Saylor believe Tesla has “de-risked” Bitcoin for big businesses — and could encourage other firms to explore ways to grow the cash they have sitting in reserve at a time of ultra-low interest rates.
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