Goldman Sachs: Why Bitcoin price is likely to hit new all-time highs in 2017

 

Sheba Jafari, the head of technical strategy at Goldman Sachs, recently revealed in a note to Business Insider that he expects Bitcoin price to extend to $3,915 and move closer to the $4,000 region this year.Technical analysis on the trend of Bitcoin price is often inaccurate due to the wide range of variables that can potentially affect Bitcoin price in a relatively short period of time. 

 In a more general sense, Bitcoin is in a sweet spot regarding global adoption, development and growth of user base. Over the past year, Bitcoin wallet platforms including Coinbase and Blockchain have registered tens of millions of new users as regions including China, South Korea, Japan, Australia and the US. They are planning to introduce more practical and efficient regulations for users, traders and companies.In consideration of Bitcoin’s current upward momentum and the rapid pace of growth of the Bitcoin industry, Jafari predicts Bitcoin price to hit $3,915 soon, which would add $22 bln to Bitcoin’s market cap. After two more rallies which may include a minor correction, Jafari expects the market cap of Bitcoin to increase by 53 percent.Jafari said:  

"From current levels, this has a minimum target that goes out to 3,212 (if equal to the length of wave I). There’s potential to extend as far as 3,915 (if 1.618 times the length of wave I). It just might take time to get there.”  

 What is pushing up Bitcoin price

The demand toward Bitcoin is rising at an exponential rate for various reasons. An increasing number of users have begun to adopt Bitcoin as a digital currency. Merchants have started to acknowledge Bitcoin as a legitimate payment method and more regions have introduced plans to regulate the Bitcoin sector to attract the public, casual traders and institutional investors.In Japan, Bitcoin has transformed into a major currency, adopted by some of the country’s prominent companies such as the nation’s largest electronics retailer Bic Camera and multi-billion dollar conglomerate GMO Group. Cointelegraph previously reported that Japan might also see the acceptance of Bitcoin by hundreds of thousands of new restaurants, cafes, stores and merchants by this fall through the integration of Bitcoin by AirRegi. 

Countries including Japan and Australia have recently eliminated double taxation on Bitcoin purchase and trading to provide clarity for users and traders. South Korea and China are moving forward in adopting Bitcoin as a legitimate digital currency, providing a more efficient ecosystem for businesses and startups.Cointelegraph revealed on July 3 that South Korea is set to legalize Bitcoin in the upcoming months with the help of the ruling Democratic Party’s representative Park Yong-jin. Once the government grants Bitcoin the status of a legitimate and legal digital currency, the cryptocurrency exchange market of South Korea is expected to prosper with increased national adoption and mainstream media coverage. With all of these factors in mind and Bitcoin’s recent upward momentum, analysts including Goldman Sachs’ Sheba Jafari expects Bitcoin price to enter the $4,000 region soon.