This is a segment from the Empire newsletter. To read full editions, subscribe.
Bitcoin once again hit $90,000 early Friday.
Thursday’s pullback, Galaxy’s Alex Thorn tells me, was “anticipated.”
“Some consolidation below the new $93,000 all-time high is healthy; it clears out recent leverage, creating a more stable foundation for another upward move. $100,000 by year’s end is very possible — or we might even see it within weeks,” he said.
We saw bitcoin quickly take on fresh price records before falling back slightly, which left one question on my mind: Wen $100,000?
Sounds like, from my chats with folks, Thorn’s thesis about the end of the year is the general consensus.
Brian Rudick, managing director of research at GSR, told me that “new demand takes time to materialize, and will likely occur over the coming months.”
Admittedly, I wondered aloud if we could see holders hit the sell button when we hit six figures, due to how big of a milestone it’ll be. Rudick, however, doesn’t buy it.
“The possibility of a US strategic bitcoin reserve will likely dampen selling. For example, whereas one may have been happy to let their bitcoin go at $95,000 before, it is now tougher to justify selling at that price when $500k is a real possibility, should the US add it as a reserve asset,” he told me.
Thorn added that the “emerging catalysts, particularly from the Trump transition team, could keep momentum strong, pushing BTC beyond this mark” despite the fact that it’s a “psychological barrier.”
Maybe it’s time to start asking: Wen $500,000?
Start your day with top crypto insights from David Canellis and Katherine Ross. Subscribe to the Empire newsletter.
Explore the growing intersection between crypto, macroeconomics, policy and finance with Ben Strack, Casey Wagner and Felix Jauvin. Subscribe to the Forward Guidance newsletter.
Get alpha directly in your inbox with the 0xResearch newsletter — market highlights, charts, degen trade ideas, governance updates, and more.
The Lightspeed newsletter is all things Solana, in your inbox, every day. Subscribe to daily Solana news from Jack Kubinec and Jeff Albus.
