10 Biggest Cryptocurrency Predictions in 2021

Published on June 8, 2021 at 4:02 pm by Usman Kabir in Hedge Funds, Lists, News

In this article we discuss the 10 biggest cryptocurrency predictions in 2021.

Cryptocurrencies have widely been hailed as the future of finance across the globe but the price volatility surrounding these digital offerings still makes them risky investments. For example, after registering record increases over a period spanning more than twelve months, Bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency in terms of market capitalization, fell from around $64,000 in April to below $30,000 in the middle of May after social media speculation around coin mining, before recovering slightly to above $40,000, but has since fallen to $32,000 again.

The freefall was initiated when Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) chief Elon Musk took to Twitter to question the environmental impact that coin mining had on the globe. Musk is a world renowned tech mogul with a cult-like following in many countries, and his followers, which had until then been bullish on Bitcoin, started cashing out, leading to a chain reaction that ultimately ended up hurting many crypto-related stocks, including Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) itself. This fall came in tandem with a broader lull in the market around technology growth stocks.

As growth stock volatility stoked institutional concern, hedge fund managers, many of whom are bullish on companies that accept crypto transactions like Shopify Inc. (NYSE: SHOP) and Square, Inc. (NYSE: SQ), sought to ease the concerns, revealing their own holdings in cryptocurrencies and even buying up some crypto stocks at lower prices in anticipation of a crypto boom in the latter part of the year.

There is still a lot of uncertainty in the market surrounding cryptocurrencies in general. Amid all the high drama, financial experts, hedge fund managers, government officials, and even some of the founding members of popular digital currencies have recently appeared on news platforms, spoken at conferences, and engaged with their followers on social media to predict the future of the crypto industry and provide some much-needed context to the conversations around crypto and fintech and their power as disruptors of traditional finance.

There is no doubt that the finance world is evolving around new technology. The entire hedge fund industry is feeling the reverberations of the changing financial landscape. Its reputation has been tarnished in the last decade, during which its hedged returns couldn’t keep up with the unhedged returns of the market indices. On the other hand, Insider Monkey’s research was able to identify in advance a select group of hedge fund holdings that outperformed the S&P 500 ETFs by more than 124 percentage points since March 2017. Between March 2017 and February 26th 2021 our monthly newsletter’s stock picks returned 197.2%, vs. 72.4% for the SPY. Our stock picks outperformed the market by more than 124 percentage points (see the details here). We were also able to identify in advance a select group of hedge fund holdings that significantly underperformed the market. We have been tracking and sharing the list of these stocks since February 2017 and they lost 13% through November 16th. That’s why we believe hedge fund sentiment is an extremely useful indicator that investors should pay attention to. You can subscribe to our free newsletter on our homepage to receive our stories in your inbox.

Luis Louro / shutterstock.com

With this context in mind, here is our list of the 10 biggest cryptocurrency predictions in 2021. We mentioned predictions, important statements, analysis and forecasts by famous experts about cryptocurrencies.

Biggest Cryptocurrency Predictions in 2021

10. Jed McCaleb, CTO Stellar

Prediction: Blockchain Will Change How Money is Moved Around the World

Jed McCaleb is the chief technology officer of the Stellar cryptocurrency, a digital currency that is developing a name for itself by offering expertise in enterprise-level crypto transactions. Stellar has partnered with popular companies like International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE: IBM) to facilitate cheaper and quicker cross border money transactions.

While announcing the partnership between Stellar and International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE: IBM) back in 2017, Jed McCaleb predicted that the new collaboration represented a significant milestone for Stellar as well as the financial technology industry as a whole. He added that blockchain tech was being used to facilitate cross-border payments.

Predicting the future of the crypto industry, he noted that once fully scaled by International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE: IBM), the new technology could potentially change the way money was moved around the world. Stellar has competition in the enterprise crypto solutions market from Ripple, another cryptocurrency with low cross border transfer fees.

Just like Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA), Shopify Inc. (NYSE: SHOP), and Square, Inc. (NYSE: SQ), International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE: IBM) is one of the top crypto stocks according to the 10 biggest cryptocurrency predictions in 2021.

9. Changpeng Zhao, CEO Binance

Prediction: Going to Take Years to Become a Decentralized Autonomous Organization

Changpeng Zhao is the CEO of Binacce, a cryptocurrency exchange platform, like Coinbase Global, Inc. (NASDAQ: COIN), that is the largest digital currency exchange in terms of trading volumes. The exchange also offers Binance Coin, a cryptocurrency used for transactions on the Binance platform. Zhao gave an interview to business news publication Bloomberg in April.

When asked about the future public listing of his exchange, following the blockbuster debut of Coinbase Global, Inc. (NASDAQ: COIN) on the stock market earlier this year, Zhao was adamant that the Binance exchange had no such plans, saying that his company was cash-sufficient and able to grow without help.

Binance is the chief rival of Coinbase Global, Inc. (NASDAQ: COIN), the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the world in terms of value of transactions on their network. When pressed about his company being run by just software, Zhao said it was still possible for Binance to become a decentralized autonomous organization, but it was going to take a number of years.

Just like Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA), Shopify Inc. (NYSE: SHOP), and Square, Inc. (NYSE: SQ), Coinbase Global, Inc. (NASDAQ: COIN) is one of the top crypto stocks according to the 10 biggest cryptocurrency predictions in 2021.

8. Timothy Massad, Former Chairman Commodity Futures Trading Commission

Prediction: Disruptions In Stablecoin Value Could Wreak Havoc on Crypto

Timothy Massad is the former chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and an expert on digital currencies. In an opinion piece for business news publication Bloomberg in May, Massad delved into a lot of detail about Tether, a cryptocurrency tied to the US dollar that companies like Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE: MA) have supported in the recent past.

Since Tether is tied to a stable fiat currency, it is much more stable in terms of price than other coins on the market, making it a suitable crypto candidate for Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE: MA). In his Bloomberg piece, Massad elaborated how this key differentiation between Tether and other digital currencies would impact the wider crypto industry.

He likened the hypothetical fall in value of Tether to below $1 to the collapse of the Lehman Brothers before the 2008 financial crisis that even affected market giants like Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE: MA). Massad wrote that disruptions in a stablecoin’s value could wreak havoc on the broader crypto market unless regulators step in.

Just like Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA), Shopify Inc. (NYSE: SHOP), and Square, Inc. (NYSE: SQ), Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE: MA) is one of the top crypto stocks according to the 10 biggest cryptocurrency predictions in 2021.

7. Charles Hoskinson, CEO Input Output Hong Kong

Prediction: Cardano More Energy Efficient Than Bitcoin

Charles Hoskinson is the CEO of research firm Input Output Hong Kong and one of the founders of Cardano, a blockchain-based cryptocurrency that is not very different from the crypto coins used by big firms like DocuSign, Inc. (NASDAQ: DOCU) to widen the overall trust in digital currencies in the business world.

However, Cardano is different from the digital coins accepted by DocuSign, Inc. (NASDAQ: DOCU) as it is more energy efficient than the other currencies, a point that Hoskinson raised in an interview with business news publication Forbes in April. The founder of Cardano said that his currency was 1.6 million times more energy efficient than Bitcoin.

The overall strain that mining coins puts on the environment has put firms like DocuSign, Inc. (NASDAQ: DOCU) under pressure to switch to energy efficient options, resulting in a dramatic fall in value of cryptocurrencies that are energy intensive or do not use clean energy solutions for mining.

Just like Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA), Shopify Inc. (NYSE: SHOP), and Square, Inc. (NYSE: SQ), DocuSign, Inc. (NASDAQ: DOCU) is one of the top crypto stocks according to the 10 biggest cryptocurrency predictions in 2021.

6. Brian Kelly, CEO BKCM LLC

Prediction: Use Cases Will Increase Value of Bitcoin Cash Like Other Cryptocurrencies

Brian Kelly is the CEO of BKCM LLC and one of the earliest proponents for the wider adoption of Bitcoin Cash, a Bitcoin spinoff mined using powerful computer hardware marketed by companies like NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ: NVDA). Bitcoin cash offers several advantages over Bitcoin, including faster transaction speeds.

However, the market has been slow in catching up to the untapped potential of Bitcoin Cash, much like the undervalued visual computing power of NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ: NVDA) chips. Kelly, a veteran financial expert, believes that value can only be added to new cryptocurrencies by increasing their use cases.

NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ: NVDA), by making its hardware more adaptable, has successfully become a top computer hardware firm through this strategy. In an interview with business news publication CNBC a couple of years ago, Kelly called Bitcoin Cash a must have cryptocurrency based on news around the setup of a Bitcoin Cash Development Fund.

Just like Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA), Shopify Inc. (NYSE: SHOP), and Square, Inc. (NYSE: SQ), NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ: NVDA) is one of the top crypto stocks according to the 10 biggest cryptocurrency predictions in 2021.

5. Charlie Lee, Managing Director Litecoin Foundation

Prediction: If Bitcoin is Gold, Litecoin is Silver

Charlie Lee is the Managing Director of Litecoin Foundation and the founder of Litecoin, the sixth largest cryptocurrency in the world that works on a proof-of-stake mechanism. Lee was a former employee at Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) before he founded Litecoin. Litecoin is also a Bitcoin spinoff that offers lower fees and faster transaction times than the parent coin.

Lee gained exposure to crypto as a former engineer at Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG), one of the largest institutional investors in digital currencies. In an interview with American news publication CNBC in late April, Lee explained that Litecoin was like silver to the gold that was Bitcoin, noting that Litecoin used a different mining algorithm to the parent coin.

This difference could be important for companies like Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) that want lower fees and faster networks, as well as environment-friendly options in the crypto industry. Lee told CNBC during his appearance that Litecoin was four times faster than Bitcoin and had more tokens, making it easier to use.

4. Denko Mancheski, CEO Reef Finance

Prediction: Polkadot in Position to Take Over Altcoin Space

Denko Mancheski is the CEO of Reef Finance, a cross-chain liquidity and yield farming aggregator that has invested aggressively in Polkadot, a network and cryptocurrency that acts as a bridge between different blockchain systems. It is a secure financial system, much like that used by Square, Inc. (NYSE: SQ), the California-based digital payments firm.

However, Square, Inc. (NYSE: SQ) does not let new users take advantage of the security system, whereas Polkadot provides developers access to security to beef up the defenses around their new currencies, making them less susceptible to attacks from the outside. Mancheski is a great admirer of this system.

Just as Square, Inc. (NYSE: SQ) markets itself as an alternative to traditional finance, Mancheski believes Polkadot is the best alternative to crypto giant Bitcoin. In an interview with business news publication Forbes in February, he said that Polkadot was in a prime position to take over the altcoin space because of slow developments within Ethereum.

3. Hesham Elsafty, Group Head for Financial Institutions and International Financial Services at National Bank of Egypt

Prediction: Ripple Will Improve Efficiency, Establish New Market Alliances

Hesham Elsafty is the Group Head for Financial Institutions and International Financial Services at National Bank of Egypt, which has invested in the Ripple cryptocurrency, one of the most popular crypto offerings in the world that was developed by Ripple Labs, a payment protocol that is aiming to be as big as PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: PYPL).

Just as PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: PYPL) makes it easier to process cross border transactions, Ripple has established relations with the Egyptian bank by marketing the same service at even lower fees. While announcing the partnership in May, Elsafty elaborated how Egypt, one of the top five countries that received remittances from abroad, would benefit.

Elsafty said the partnership with Ripple would help to improve overall efficiency by enabling NBE to establish new alliances across wider markets with reduced cost and quicker integration time. Perhaps anticipating this, PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: PYPL) recently also allowed users to checkout with crypto on its platforms.

2. Sarah Bergstrand, COO BitBull Capital

Prediction: Ethereum Will Rocket to $100,000 by 2025

Sarah Bergstrand is the COO of BitBull Capital that has a bullish view on Ethereum, the second most popular cryptocurrency in the world that many believe will take over the number one spot from Bitcoin in the coming years. Big companies like Shopify Inc. (NYSE: SHOP), the Canadian ecommerce platform, already accept Ethereum as payment for sales.

The trust that Shopify Inc. (NYSE: SHOP) has shown in Ethereum looks set to pay off as finance experts like Bergstrand believe that new developments within the Ethereum network, which is in the process of transferring itself to a more leaner platform that is less energy intensive, will lead to a staggering increase in the price of the coin.

In an interview with business news publication Forbes in May, Bergstrand predicted that Ethereum will rocket to a staggering $100,000 by 2025. Shopify Inc. (NYSE: SHOP) CEO Tobi Lutke is similarly bullish on Ethereum, taking to social networking platform Twitter in April this year to ask for ideas related to investments similar to Ethereum that his company could explore.

1. Cathie Wood, CEO ARK Investment Management

Prediction: Bitcoin Will Reach $500,000

Cathie Wood is the CEO of ARK Investment Management and one of the most successful investors in the world. She has been consistently backing Bitcoin to succeed as the most popular cryptocurrency in the world, along with big firms like Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA), the California-based electric vehicle maker owned by billionaire Elon Musk.

Cathie Wood of ARK Investment Management

Earlier this year, Bitcoin value fell sharply after reaching a high of around $64,000 in April after Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) suspended Bitcoin payments for sales and Musk voiced his disapproval of the energy intensive mining methods used by Bitcoin, sending stocks of many crypto firms, including those in which ARK has ownership, sliding to new lows.

Wood, whose hedge fund has a big stake in Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA), disagrees with Musk on the issue, and appeared on business news station Bloomberg TV in May to claim that Bitcoin would rise to $500,000 despite recent setbacks. Wood made the claim on the back of reports that the adoption of solar energy in coin mining was accelerating dramatically.

You can also take a peek at 10 Blue Chip Dividend Stocks Hedge Funds Are Buying and 14 Best European Dividend Stocks To Buy.