The value of cryptocurrency is growing at an exponential rate, it reaches a level of 2.2 trillion euros. Bitcoin alone is worth roughly $920 billion ($1.3 trillion). But what does the year 2022 hold for these virtual currencies? Zoom on the big predictions of experts relating to the universe of cryptocurrency.
The world of cryptocurrency has been marked by big turbulent events. 2022 will most likely be no exception to this trend and the pace should continue. And for good reason, large companies are developing in this field, blockchain technologies are progressing strongly and are experiencing an increasingly strong evolution. This will make it easier for new entrants to establish themselves in this market.
As a reminder, in 2021, El Salvador adopted bitcoin as legal tender. This decision proves that Bitcoin, and digital currencies in general, have a real interest and can present certain advantages that go beyond debates on their volatility. They are now well on their way to becoming an integral part of finance.
Read also: The 5 alternative cryptocurrencies to Bitcoin
1. Could bitcoin reach $100,000?
Some experts, like Kate Waltman, a CPA and cryptocurrency specialist, are very optimistic and expect bitcoin to hit $100,000 in the first quarter of 2022 or even earlier. Others aren't so sure about the date or even the number, but point to an upward trend over time. Investors can expect a "sustainable" rise over the long term, driven by market movements, with the $100,000 threshold in sight, predicted Jurrien Timmer, director of global macro at Fidelity. Investments.
For Kiana Danial, founder of Invest Diva and author of Cryptocurrency Investing For Dummies : “ What I expect from bitcoin is short-term volatility and long-term growth,” she explains to Next Advisor.
2. The value of ethereum would increase faster than that of bitcoin
Ethereum is the second most powerful cryptocurrency in terms of capitalization: 393 billion as of May 10, according to Coinmarketcap. This currency was born in 2013. It was created by Vitalik Buterin , a Russian researcher and programmer. Ethereum has the advantage of introducing self-executing smart contracts, called “decentralized applications”. These are mini-programs capable of performing any function (mainly issuing new cryptographic tokens).
Ethereum is now becoming a solid and attractive cryptocurrency that is steadily increasing in value over time. However, it has a negative point, that of the limitation of its transaction processing capacities.
The number of Ethereum addresses holding less than 0.01 ETH and less than 0.1 ETH hit an all-time high on December 12 with a total of 70 million. After hitting a dramatic high in November of around $4,867, Ethereum is down over 18% and is now selling near $3,900. This drop did not deter investors from buying the token in small amounts.
“The price of Ethereum will rise at a much faster rate than Bitcoin, due to the move to proof-of-stake,” Tom Higgins, CEO of asset management platform Gold-i, pointed out to The Press . Free
3. The eventual fall in stock value would benefit bitcoin in 2022
Mike McGlone, chief cryptocurrency analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence explains that Bitcoin could find itself in a favorable situation if the stock market falls following an expected tightening by the Fed in 2022. “ Some normalization of stock returns and a Continued decline in US Treasury bond yields could benefit Bitcoin ,” the Bloomberg analyst detailed.
4. "The metaverse would become the new interface for people to interact on the web and with each other"
The Metaverse has enormous potential. It connects people with each other and brands with their customers in a way that surpasses all old technologies never developed before. Justin Banon, co-founder of the decentralized network Boson Protocol, explains: “The metaverse has enormous potential but we will only start to notice it in practice if it is built in an open and decentralized way. In our opinion, this is not yet universal, but more importantly, we are laying the foundations for virtual worlds in which people are able to interact socially and economically without Big Tech acting as controllers, gatekeepers or extractive intermediates. »