Standard Chartered Holds $100,000 Bitcoin Target, Says "Bottom Is Nearly In

Standard Chartered is sticking to its $100,000 Bitcoin price prediction even as BTC dipped to $61,000 lows today, because nothing says "conviction" like reaffirming a round number right after a 15% drop. The $920 billion Wall Street bank said Bitcoin's bottom is almost in, apparently hoping the market finds that sentiment as reassuring as a buy-the-dip thread posted at 3 a.m.

In a note to clients on June 4, Standard Chartered maintained its $100,000 year-end Bitcoin target, arguing the selling — driven by Strategy's surprise sale, spot ETF outflows, and broader crypto market liquidations — is likely over. Geoffrey Kendrick, the bank's global head of digital assets research, said Bitcoin's bottom is "nearly in place." He added that "when we look back at the end of 2026 with Bitcoin price around $100,000, we will say this was the buying zone we all wanted." Bitcoin is trading near $64,000 after a rise in US jobless claims, down more than 15% since Monday and roughly 30% for the year.

Three reasons Kendrick is still bullish. First, Strategy has historically bought more BTC than it sold. The firm last sold Bitcoin in 2022 and purchased more than it offloaded just two days later. Kendrick called the latest sale's timing "a shame" but expects "aggressive" Bitcoin buying ahead. Michael Saylor's Strategy sold Bitcoin worth $2.5 million to fund distributions on preferred stock, which is one way to get headlines. Second, spot ETF holdings are holding up better than feared. Cumulative net inflows since inception remain at $54.2 billion, similar to earlier this year, and total BTC held by spot ETFs sits at roughly 674,000 BTC — down from a peak near 682,000 but broadly unchanged in structural terms. Third, the leveraged longs available for liquidation are smaller than in prior crashes. Bitcoin futures bets worth $1.5 billion were liquidated during the current downturn, in line with January's selloff.

Standard Chartered's Kendrick also recently predicted that Strategy's BTC sale could trigger Ethereum's outperformance over Bitcoin. The bank cut its 2026 Ethereum price target by 47% to $4,000, but kept it on the leaderboard of optimistic calls.