Ether and Bitcoin are as strong as they can after shedding away the burden of crypto winter. However, one of them is poised to outperform the other in 2024. A general conception would place Bitcoin at the top of the table, but it is Ether in this instance. Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou, an analyst at JP Morgan, has sided with Ether, saying that ETH will reassert itself and outperform Bitcoin in the next year.
The performance measurement largely measures how much they gain from the beginning of the new year. A larger reference makes this more evident:
ETH is currently exchanging hands at $2,260.46, and BTC is being traded at $42,800.32. Both figures were true at the time of drafting this piece.
Bitcoin is anticipated to touch its ATH value by the end of 2024. Alternatively, it could surpass that milestone and set the $100k mark as a new benchmark altogether. Ether, on the other hand, is dancing around $2,200. If Ether forecast is to be believed, then the maximum that it can reach is as high as $5,000 by the end of 2024.
The EIP-4844 upgrade might improve Ether’s performance. It is scheduled to happen in the first half of 2024. Reportedly, the previous launch was for the fourth quarter of 2023.
Simultaneously known as Proto-Danksharding, the EIP-4844 upgrade comes loaded with a commitment to increase the efficiency of the network and bring down transaction fees for its users. A concrete conclusion will only be reached once it goes live and members have tried and tested the functionality.
The analyst from JP Morgan believes that the launch of the said upgrade would be a turning point and a bigger step toward improving activities on the Ethereum network.
A successful result from Proton-Danksharding will pave the way for Danksharding. The idea is to introduce data blobs that are capable of holding more data than blocks without storing them permanently.
Bitcoin is relying heavily on two factors: Spot Bitcoin ETF and Bitcoin halving. Both activities are tentatively scheduled to happen in the first half of 2024. While applications for ETF could be approved by January 10, 2024, the halving process will happen sometime in the middle of 2024. Many experts have also signaled caution, stating that Bitcoin ETF applications may never see the light if the SEC decides to reject them. Moreover, the halving process may simply pass by, not letting anyone feel the hype around it.
One factor that Bitcoin and Ethereum share is a reduction in rates by the Federal Reserve. The sole benefiting factor will free the capital for its movement to boost the digital economy.
All eyes are now on what will happen in the first six months of 2024. The community is also keeping an eye on how both tokens end in 2023, considering they cannot fall below their resistance levels if an ATH is the actual target.
