Asian Crypto Investors Bullish on Bitcoin, Expect $100K by Year-End

There has been a significant influx of Crypto investment from the Asian regions.  With a very high appetite from growing family offices and high net-worth individuals (HNWI), they are seriously considering investing or trading digital assets in the Asian crypto markets. A survey earlier this year found that more moneyed investors are putting their capital into cryptocurrencies these days, with 76% of them doing so in contrast to the year 2022, when just 58% were investing. With Bitcoin (BTC) poised to hit mass adoption, Asian crypto elites are optimistic for BTC to be somewhere on the $100k mark come the end of the year.

The surge in Crypto Investment Among Asia’s Wealthy

According to news sources, additional stark evidence of family offices and high-net-worth individuals from Asia entering the digital asset fray is being presented. 76% are now invested, with a further 16% expecting to invest in the future. This is a marked improvement from 2022, where just 58% had investments in the space, with 34%  planning future investments.

Research was carried out and completed by more than 80 respondents, who collectively manage between $10 million and $500 million in assets under management (AUM). Of those surveyed, 20% actually manage portfolios that are more than $500 million, indicating a strong interest in digital assets, even among the wealthiest in this region.

Field of Interest: DeFi and Blockchain Infrastructure

The survey also revealed that decentralised finance (DeFi) is an area of interest for 67% of wealth managers in Asia. Other popular areas are blockchain infrastructure (50%) and tokenizing real-world assets which goes to show just how much they believe that blockchain technology will radically overhaul the financial systems of yesteryear.

Notably, the report states that there is high hope for on-chain financial service users, predicting 85 million current users to exceed 200+ million in a five-year period. This prediction was epitomised by Re7 Capital, which told the survey that they believe that soon, all asset classes will migrate to blockchain since it is a new world with great growth opportunities.

Bitcoin’s $100K Prediction: What’s Driving the Optimism?

This spike in curiosity regarding Asian crypto comes as the report detailed that a good number of private wealth managers are optimistic on Bitcoin long-term. Of the respondents, 31% did feel Bitcoin could go as high as $100k through Q4. This optimism is fuelled by several factors, including anticipation of interest rate cuts and good regulation news on the horizon as well as possible effects from U.S. presidential elections.

Conversely, most private wealth managers have barely 5% of their portfolios invested in cryptocurrencies. However,  reports highlighted a number of other challenges that currently stand in the way before broader adoption can be realised. These include regulatory ambiguity, balkanized markets, and overall poor UX for many investors who are navigating crypto.

Future of Asian Crypto Adoption in their Wealth Sector  

Although digital assets still comprise a small portion of many portfolios, the number is expected to grow. About 30% of survey respondents said that they intend to increase their investments. The move is also helped by the launching of Bitcoin and Ether ETFs that track futures prices to make it easier for big investors to have exposure to crypto markets without actually holding assets.

To sum up, while digital assets are far from becoming a norm in Asia yet, a growing number of family offices and HNI layers have started to invest in cryptocurrencies significantly. As interest multiplies and the market evolves further, it could just be a dominant force across the global digital asset landscape. Should these predictions prove to be on the mark, by year-end, Bitcoin’s price could catapult into rarefied air, only reaffirming its place among Asia’s fiscal elite.