Bitcoin Will Drop to $10,000 Says Wikipedia Co-Founder: "Possibly Much Lower"

Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales says Bitcoin could crash below $10,000 by 2050. In a post on X dated February 25, Wales laid out a bearish long-term case for the world's largest cryptocurrency, calling it "a complete failure as a currency, as a store of value" and predicting it would fade into what he described as "hobbyist tinkering." Bitcoin is currently trading around $66,000.

What Exactly Did Jimmy Wales Say About Bitcoin?

Wales opened with a somewhat surprising concession: people calling for Bitcoin to hit zero are "likely mistaken." He credited the network's design as robust enough to survive indefinitely, barring a cryptographic breakdown or a successful 51% attack. Even then, he suggested a fork would likely carry on.

But survival, in his view, doesn't mean success.

Wales described Bitcoin as volatile, hard to use, and not accepted as currency anywhere meaningful. In his view, traditional safe-haven assets like gold, silver, real estate, and fine art will continue to dominate as stores of value. His bottom line was blunt: "I'd suggest a 2050 price target of under $10,000 in today's dollars. Possibly much lower."

In follow-up posts, Wales went further. He called Bitcoin "a speculative asset at best" and dismissed claims that AI adoption or institutional backing would prop up prices long-term. On the topic of Bitcoin ETFs, he said institutional players are "famously ruthless and not ideological," suggesting they'd happily let products trade lower and lower if public interest fades.

Wales Has Been Here Before

This is far from the first time Wales has taken aim at Bitcoin. In 2020, he clarified he holds no ideological opposition to crypto but saw no practical reason to use it for Wikipedia's operations. By December 2023, he was highlighting risks like losing access to funds through forgotten wallet passwords, contrasting that with the reliability of traditional banks.

The difference now is the price. Bitcoin traded below $10,000 in 2020. Its roughly sevenfold rise since then hasn't changed his mind. If anything, the rally has strengthened his conviction that the asset runs on speculation rather than utility.

How Did the Crypto Community React?

The response was swift and largely critical. Bitcoin supporters on X pointed to institutional adoption, ETF inflows, and the asset's hard-capped supply of 21 million coins as counterarguments. One popular reply took a shot at Wikipedia's donation model, arguing Bitcoin's incentive structure is more sustainable.

The timing of Wales' comments also raised eyebrows. On the same day he posted, U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs logged $506.5 million in net inflows, their strongest single-day total in three weeks. That reversed a five-week stretch of outflows totaling roughly $3.8 billion.

Corporate Treasury Holdings Paint a Different Picture

The numbers challenge Wales' framing:

• 84 public companies now hold over 1.12 million BTC collectively, according to The Block
• Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy) alone holds 717,722 BTC, more than 3.4% of total supply
• CoinGecko tracks 164 institutions holding a combined 1.76 million BTC worth roughly $118 billion

Wales dismissed this institutional backing as profit-driven rather than ideological. But for many in the market, the distinction doesn't matter. Capital is capital.

Does Wales Have a Point?

Parts of his argument are hard to dismiss outright. Bitcoin remains volatile. It still isn't widely used for everyday purchases. And its track record as a stable store of value is short compared to gold or real estate. At roughly 47% below its all-time high above $126,000, the price action isn't exactly helping the bull case right now either.

But the $10,000 prediction by 2050 requires Bitcoin to lose roughly 85% of its current value in inflation-adjusted terms over the next 24 years, all while institutional adoption is expanding rather than contracting. That's a bold call even by bearish standards.

Wales isn't predicting Bitcoin's death. He's predicting its irrelevance. Whether or not you agree, the debate itself is a reminder that, even at current prices, consensus on Bitcoin's future is nowhere near settled.

Sources:

• Jimmy Wales on X — Original post predicting Bitcoin below $10,000 by 2050
• Yahoo Finance / CCN — Coverage of Wales' comments, ETF inflow data, and community reaction
• CoinGecko — Institutional Bitcoin holdings data across 164 tracked entities
• TheStreet Crypto — Background on Wales' history of Bitcoin skepticism
• Strategy — Official Bitcoin purchase tracker confirming 717,722 BTC held