BITCOIN IS STILL HEADED TO $150,000 BY YEAR-END DESPITE THE RECENT PULLBACK, STANDARD CHARTERED SAYS

• Bitcoin is still on track to more than double its price by the end of the year, Standard Chartered predicted.
• The firm's head of digital assets research pointed to a bullish backdrop for the crypto token.

Bitcoin's price could still more than double this year, thanks to a bullish setup for the crypto coin that could reignite its rally, according to Geoff Kendrick, the head of digital assets research at Standard Chartered.

Speaking to BNN Bloomberg last week, Kendrick reiterated his firm's price target of $150,000, implying a 127% upside for bitcoin by the end of the year.

Bitcoin has pulled back in recent weeks, sliding 11% from its all-time high of around $73,000 in March of this year.

The pullback has been driven by slowing inflows into bitcoin ETFS and rising tensions in the Middle East, which have "dominated" crypto markets for now, Kendrick said. But he thinks that could reverse later on in the year, thanks to a huge wave of investor inflows:

Spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds have taken in around $12 billion since they were approved in January, Kendrick estimated. And while crypto traders are feeling temporarily cautious, inflows could pick up to $50 billion to $100 billion over the next two years, he predicted, once the crypto ETF market in the US becomes more "mature."

Bitcoin also looks to be on a bullish trajectory after its halving event, Kendrick said. The halving reduces the amount rewarded to bitcoin miners, therefore reducing the amount of new bitcoin entering circulation. That's traditionally led to a spike in bitcoin prices, with the last three halving events followed by fresh all-time highs in the next 12 months.

"From where we are now, it's starting to look like we can push higher again," Kendrick said.

Standard Chartered is among the most bullish bitcoin forecasters on Wall Street, and the firm has also predicted bitcoin could climb to $250,000 in 2025, implying a 266% upside from the coin's levels in March.