Standard Chartered’s head of digital assets research Geoffrey Kendrick says bitcoin $BTC$66,459.26 may have already put in its low for the current market cycle, arguing that a combination of improving investor flows, corporate buying and easing macroeconomic pressures points to a stronger recovery ahead.
The latest call marks a shift in sentiment after several months in which crypto markets struggled with rising geopolitical tensions, concerns about inflation and persistent outflows from U.S. spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs.)
Last Friday, Kendrick told clients he believed bitcoin’s decline to roughly $59,000 represented the cycle low. At the time, however, he outlined three developments he wanted to see before gaining more confidence in that view: renewed bitcoin purchases by Strategy (MSTR), a return to positive ETF inflows and continued weakness in oil prices.
By Monday, all three had materialized.
Strategy, the largest corporate holder of bitcoin, disclosed that it purchased another 1,587 $BTC last week. U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs posted net inflows of $86 million on Friday after a stretch of notable redemptions. Oil prices also continued to move lower, reducing concerns that higher energy costs could push inflation and bond yields upward.
