Global investment bank JPMorgan says that profit-taking from Grayscale’s bitcoin trust (GBTC) has largely happened already. “This would imply that most of the downward pressure on bitcoin from that channel should be largely behind us,” the bank’s analyst explained.
JPMorgan’s Bitcoin Price Outlook
Global investment bank JPMorgan weighed in on the crypto market again this week following a bitcoin selloff that saw the price of BTC dropping from above $47K before the spot bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) approvals to below $39K this week.
The bitcoin selloff is accompanied by massive outflows from Grayscale’s bitcoin trust (GBTC), which converted into a spot bitcoin ETF following the approval by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Jan. 10. Since Jan. 12, GBTC’s bitcoin holdings have decreased by 114,367.39 BTC, equivalent to $4.77 billion, based on the BTC exchange rates as of Jan. 27.
On Thursday, JPMorgan strategist Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou said: “Given $4.3b has come out already from GBTC, we conclude that GBTC profit taking has largely happened already.” The analyst added:
This would imply that most of the downward pressure on bitcoin from that channel should be largely behind us.
Last week, Panigirtzoglou predicted that $3 billion would exit GBTC, building on his earlier estimate that up to $3 billion had been invested into GBTC in the secondary market during 2023 to take advantage of the discount to NAV. He explained that as this $3 billion leaves the bitcoin space through GBTC profit-taking, bitcoin’s price will face downward pressure.
Sharing a similar view, Needham’s John Todaro said in a note that Thursday “registered one of the lowest days in net outflows from GBTC and the third consecutive day of declining outflows, which could indicate the beginning of a slowdown in redemptions.” He emphasized: “While it has been difficult to quantify how much more should come out of GBTC, we believe two of the largest drivers of selling [– outflows driven by the FTX estate and arbitrage funds –] are nearly done.”
This week, another JPMorgan analyst, Kenneth Worthington, said: “We think the catalyst in bitcoin ETFs that has pushed the ecosystem out of its winter will disappoint market participants.” The investment bank downgraded Coinbase stock (Nasdaq: COIN) from Neutral to Underweight.
Do you think JPMorgan analyst Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou is right about the price of bitcoin? Let us know in the comments section below.
