Bitcoin's path to $100,000 is less important than its potential impact on the corporate world over the next decade, Wedbush says
- Dan Ives of Wedbush said bitcoin's effect on the corporate world is more important than its price.
- The analyst argued moves into blockchain tech and cryptocurrencies may surge over the coming years.
- "Bitcoin mania is not a fad...but rather the start of a new age on the digital currency front."
Bitcoin's path to $100,000 per coin is less important than its potential impact on the corporate world over the next decade, according to Wedbush.
In a note to clients on Thursday, Wedbush's Dan Ives said that the story around bitcoin is much larger than its "potential path/timeline to $100,000."
The analyst argued the important theme when it comes to cryptocurrencies is "the potential ramifications that crypto, blockchain, and Bitcoin could have across the technology and corporate world for the next decade."
Ives said moves into blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies could surge over the coming years after companies like Tesla, IBM, Visa, Square, Mastercard, and more entered the fray recently.
There's a "growing shift for companies to accept this digital currency as a form of payment," according to the analyst.
Ives added that he still believes "less than 5% of public companies" will invest in bitcoin over the next 12-18 months but said that number could move "markedly higher" as more regulation and acceptance of the currency takes hold.
"Bitcoin mania is not a fad in our opinion, but rather the start of a new age on the digital currency front," Ives wrote.
Although Ives was one of the first to the party, his comments about cryptocurrencies and their regulation are becoming more in sync with other Street commentators and even CEOs as cryptocurrencies and blockchain technologies continue to develop.
David Solomon, the CEO of Goldman Sachs, said his bank is looking into ways to support clients' desire to own cryptocurrencies and other digital assets in a CNBC "Squawk Box" interview on Tuesday.
The CEO added that he believes there will be a "big evolution" in the way the US government regulates digital assets in the coming years.
Ives and his team also highlighted the potential of using blockchain technology for decentralized storage in their note to clients on Thursday.
The analyst said blockchain technology can help increase the overall speed and lower the price of digital storage moving forward. He noted, "there are a number of business models attacking this new market opportunity with privately-held Filecoin one of the more impressive strategies we have seen in the market."
As far as Wedbush is concerned, Bitcoin isn't going away anytime soon, rather it's set to become "mainstream" and the effects on Wall Street and the corporate world will be huge.
Coinbase's 840% revenue jump in the first quarter may be the perfect example of what Ives is talking about.
Coinbase posted $1.8 billion in revenue in its first-quarter report. That means the crypto exchange pulled in over $120 million more than Intercontinental Exchange, the company that owns the New York Stock Exchange, did in its most recent earnings report.