Standard Chartered still sees Bitcoin at $100K by year-end.

Kendrick: The Bottom Is Nearly In Place

Standard Chartered's global head of digital assets research, Geoffrey Kendrick, is sticking with his $100,000 year-end target for $BTC, even after a bruising week that dragged Bitcoin down roughly 15% toward $61,000. In a note to clients, Kendrick said the bottom is "nearly in place," pointing to three reasons for confidence: the sell-off triggered by concerns around Strategy's Bitcoin sales was overblown, spot ETF inflows still total around $54 billion in aggregate, and the roughly $1.5 billion in liquidations was consistent with previous corrections rather than a structural breakdown.

The $100,000 figure is itself a revised target. Standard Chartered cut its end-2025 Bitcoin price target to $100,000 from $200,000 late last year, and pushed its long-term $500,000 forecast out to 2030, as corporate digital asset treasury buyers stepped back and left ETF inflows as the main driver of expected gains. With treasury companies out of the equation, Kendrick has said the primary Bitcoin price driver remaining is ETF flows.

Bearish Signals Persist

Not everyone is persuaded that the worst is behind the market. Bitcoin remains down around 30% on the year, and on-chain data paints a cautious picture. Bitcoin network use has fallen to its weakest level in more than seven years, with active addresses dropping near levels last seen during the 2019 bear market, according to Bitcoin Magazine's 60-day moving average data. Network use has declined since the 2021 bull market, partly because ETFs reduced direct on-chain transaction demand, while the passage of the Genius Act helped stablecoin activity expand on competing chains including Ethereum, Solana, and Tron.

Analysts note the drop in activity points to a lack of short-term holders, who typically enter the market during hype phases and exit during corrections, leaving the network dominated by long-term holders focused on accumulation. Historically, similar periods of relative silence in on-chain metrics have coincided with base-building phases ahead of further upside, with CryptoQuant suggesting the decline may signal a gradual absorption of liquid supply. Whether that dynamic plays out this cycle, or whether further downside materialises first, remains the central debate among analysts heading into the second half of the year.

This article does not constitute investment advice.

Sources:
The Block: Standard Chartered halves 2025 Bitcoin target to $100K
Crypto.news: Bitcoin network activity drops to a 7-year low
Yahoo Finance: Standard Chartered lowers Bitcoin price forecasts