The Winklevoss twins think bitcoin could 'go up another 20 times' and trounce gold
- The Winklevoss twins think bitcoin could appreciate 20 times and trounce gold.
- Others say the cryptocurrency is in a bubble.
Traders in the new bitcoin futures market appear bullish on the red-hot coin.
Contracts for the January futures contract on Cboe Global Markets were trading well-above the spot market for bitcoin, at over $17,500 a coin on Monday.
But most traders are nowhere near as bullish as the Winklevoss twins. Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, whose bitcoin holdings are worth more than $1 billion, told Fox Business Monday the coin could reach well above $300,000 a coin.
"Today it's about a $300 billion market cap, gold is at $6 trillion, so we think it could very well go up another 20 times from today," Cameron Winklevoss said.
Bitcoin, he said, could ultimately trounce its earthly rival.
"We think it's definitely realistic that it could grow and disrupt gold and maybe even beyond that," Winklevoss said.
Bitcoin, which gained 1,500% so far this year, was trading up 8.9% at $16,407% on Monday afternoon. The coin, which is known for its spine-tingling volatility, has traded higher since Cboe's launch of bitcoin futures. The exchange operator is partnered with Gemini, the cryptocurrency exchange founded by the Winklevoss twins, for the new market.
Still, that hasn't kept naysayers quiet. Some of the most well-respect analysts and economists on Wall Street have said bitcoin is a bubble. In fact, in a note sent out to clients on Monday, UBS Global Chief Economist Paul Donovan referred to bitcoin as the "bubble to end all bubbles." Here's Donovan:
"Cryptocurrencies only have value if accepted as currencies. However, they cannot be used for the most important transaction in an economy, and cryptocurrency supply can only rise and never fall (making them a poor store of value). To date, using cryptocurrencies requires (effectively) a simultaneous asset sale and purchase of goods or services."
