AVAX To Outperform Bitcoin, Ethereum, Reaching $250 By 2029: Standard Chartered

Avalanche AVAX/USD could deliver the strongest gains among major digital assets in the coming years, according to Geoffrey Kendrick, Head of Digital Assets Research at Standard Chartered.

What Happened: In a research note, Kendrick said he expects AVAX to rise tenfold by the end of 2029, outperforming both Bitcoin BTC/USD and Ethereum ETH/USD in relative price growth.

"We see AVAX increasing 10x by end-2029, outpacing both BTC and ETH gains," Kendrick wrote, citing Avalanche's improved scalability following its recent Etna upgrade.

The price target outlined in the bank's forecast places AVAX at approximately $250 by the close of 2029, compared to its current level near $20.

Kendrick's bullish view stems from Avalanche's architectural shift after the December 2024 Etna upgrade, which eliminated the cost barrier to launching subnets—customizable, application-specific sidechains that scale the network.

"The cost of establishing a subnet was slashed to close to zero," Kendrick noted, referencing the removal of the AVAX staking requirement, previously valued between $225,000 and $450,000.

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Why It Matters: The report highlights strong early signals for Avalanche's growth.

A quarter of all subnets are now Etna-compatible, and developer activity is rising, particularly from teams moving over from Ethereum Layer-2 solutions.

Avalanche's EVM compatibility eases this transition, enabling builders to carry over tooling and code with minimal friction.

"We think the current development momentum is likely to continue, supporting activity growth on Avalanche and driving AVAX price gains," Kendrick wrote.

While the note acknowledges AVAX's high volatility—three-month volatility is close to 100%, nearly double that of Bitcoin—Kendrick believes its smaller market capitalization means incremental network improvements can have an outsized impact on price performance.

Standard Chartered's price targets forecast AVAX steadily climbing year over year, hitting $55 in 2025 and doubling annually to reach $250 by 2029.

That trajectory implies increasing investor confidence in Avalanche's unique scaling strategy and potential leadership among Ethereum-compatible (EVM) blockchains.

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