TL;DR:
- Hougan says Bitcoin can reach a new ATH in 2026 as ETF allocation accelerates, including via Bank of America advisers and platforms.
- He says prior cycle forces are weaker, Fed cuts in 2025 and expected easing support risk assets, and Bitcoin volatility and equity correlation should fall.
- Grayscale forecasts a record in H1 2026, citing $87B ETP inflows since 2024, under 0.5% US advised allocation, and issuance below 1%.
Bitcoin’s 2026 outlook is being renegotiated, and the question now is less “if” than “how” a new peak could form. The four year cycle is losing its grip as Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan says Bitcoin can set a new all time high in 2026 despite the pattern that typically delivers three up years and one sharp setback. Grayscale also expects a fresh record in the first half of 2026, arguing the market is shifting toward an institution led phase.
For Hougan, the hinge is distribution: he expects institutional ETF allocation to accelerate as platforms such as Morgan Stanley, Wells Fargo and Merrill begin to allocate. He also noted Bank of America now allows advisers to recommend Bitcoin ETFs, potentially routing slices of $3.5 trillion in client assets into those vehicles. At publication, Bitcoin traded near $87,000, down almost 1%.
Experts see institutional era weakening the four year cycle
Hougan’s thesis is that prior cycle drivers are weaker, so 2026 does not have to be a “down year.” Bitwise says structural shifts can sustain price because the halving, interest rate cycles, and leverage fueled booms and busts are “significantly” less powerful than in past cycles. He acknowledges that the latest halving in April 2024 would normally point to 2026 as the retracement leg, but argues the macro setup has flipped. The Federal Reserve cut rates three times in 2025 and expects to keep easing next year, unlike 2018 and 2022 when rising rates pressured digital assets. He also expects Bitcoin to keep de risked, pointing to a steady decade long decline in volatility and noting it was less volatile than Nvidia through 2025. Finally, he forecasts only modest equity correlation in 2026. In 2025 it tracked NASDAQ 100 in selloffs.
Grayscale backs a similar call using allocation math and scarcity signals. Grayscale calls 2026 an institutional inflection point as it expects macro demand for alternative stores of value to rise amid public debt and fiat risks. It says global crypto ETPs have drawn about $87 billion in net inflows since January 2024, yet less than 0.5% of US advised wealth is in crypto, leaving room as due diligence and model portfolios broaden access. Scarcity is central: Bitcoin’s issuance rate is below 1%, and the 20 millionth coin is expected in March 2026. For policy, it cites court wins, Bitcoin and Ether ETP launches in 2024, and the GENIUS Act on stablecoins in 2025, while expecting bipartisan market structure legislation in 2026. It notes this cycle’s peak year over year gain was about 240%, far below prior 1,000% surges.
