With the recent halving and spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs) driving demand, Bitcoin has had the spotlight for much of 2024. However, according to Cathie Wood of Ark Invest, Ethereum (ETH) could catch up to Bitcoin and provide investors with huge profits in the coming years.
At an investor conference held by Ark Invest, Wood spoke about Ethereum, noting that the project could reach a market capitalization of $20 trillion by 2032. ETH currently has a supply of around 120 million tokens. So, a market cap of $20 trillion implies a per-token price of over $166,000. Additionally, the Ethereum foundation continues to burn tokens, so this number could be even higher.
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At a price of $166,000, six ETH would be worth roughly $1 million. Currently, six ETHs cost around $20,000.
For reference, the entire market cap of the S&P 500 is roughly $40 trillion. Additionally, the entirety of the world's above-ground gold reserves are estimated to be worth around $16 trillion. While Ethereum could theoretically get to a market cap of $20 trillion, it likely won't happen any time soon, if at all.
However, to give some reasoning behind this massive claim, Wood mostly discussed mainstream adoption. Ethereum mainly serves as a way to directly interact with a host of decentralized finance (DeFi) applications. These projects can provide benefits ranging from borrowing and lending to storing health records. However, in 2024, DeFi is mostly used for small-scale financial platforms. According to Wood, if Ethereum can begin to rack up use cases that are beneficial to users, adoption could follow, which could theoretically increase the price of the token.
Additionally, the potential for spot Ethereum ETFs could further propel prices. The spot Bitcoin ETFs, approved in early 2024, have been the most successful of all time. They have brought in tons of new capital to Bitcoin, helping the token reach new highs. While it is not guaranteed, the potential approval of spot ETFs could have a similar impact on the price of ETH.
Apart from this, Wood was likely just throwing a huge number out there to get investors excited about the future of ETH. While there is certainly the potential for a promising future, it is unlikely that Wood's prediction will be correct.
It is also important to consider that Wood has a vested interest in Ethereum's performance. Her company, Ark Invest, currently has an Ethereum futures ETF (ARKZ) and is in talks with the Securities and Exchange Commission about a spot Ethereum ETF.
Wood would benefit from an increased volume in ETH, specifically as it relates to the financial products that her firm offers.
Despite the apparent conflict of interest, many are still bullish on ETH into the near future. As crypto adoption grows and the potential for ETH to take advantage of spot ETFs, there is certainly room for ETH to reach new heights.
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