- The price of bitcoin could plunge as low as $30,000, according to Mizuho's Dan Dolev.
- The analyst warned that bitcoin's latest rally was about to "unravel."
The price of bitcoin is being sent higher by a rally among investors with a fear of missing out, and the token could plummet back to a level closer to $30,000 as the enthusiasm fades, according to Mizuho Securities' analyst Dan Dolev.
Speaking to CNBC on Friday, Dolev cautioned investors against buying into bitcoin's latest surge, with the price of crypto token soaring 48% to record highs since the start of the year. That's because interest in the crypto is about to fade, which could cause the price to tank to as low as $30,000, he warned, implying as much as a 54% loss from levels on Monday around $64,750.
The price of bitcoin could eventually plunge as low as $20,000 in the next "ice age" for crypto, Dolev added. That would mark a 69% drop from current levels.
"Right now it's doing well, but I still think longer-term it has no yield support, it's basically just FOMO, and I think eventually it's going to go down. I think eventually this is going to unravel that there's really nothing there," Dolev said. "I see no value in it personally, so it probably goes back to the 40s or 30s, easily."
Bitcoin has climbed higher in recent months on enthusiasm and demand generated by the nearly dozen spot bitcoin ETFs that were approved in January, as well as crypto's next "halving" event and the prospect of Fed rate cuts this year.
But Fed rate cut expectations have been dialed back significantly amid hotter-than-expected inflation prints, which means central bankers look poised to keep rates higher for longer to fight inflation. Markets are now pricing in an 84% chance the Fed will only cut rates two times or less this year, according to the CME FedWatch tool.
Bitcoin has dropped by about 9% over the last week.
Dolev's forecast is contrary to those from bitcoin bulls, who have said the crypto token has more room to soar this year. The token's latest rally suggests that bitcoin could climb as high as $150,000 by mid-2025, Bernstein analysts recently predicted, implying 129% upside from current levels.