Goldman Sachs is moving ahead with plans to open the first bitcoin trading firm of any Wall Street bank and other banks will likely follow, said Spencer Bogart, a partner at Blockchain Capital.
“That’s what a lot of banks do, follow what Goldman does,” the blockchain venture capitalist told CNBC on Thursday.
“Most of these banks have heard about the numbers or seen the numbers that companies like Coinbase and Binance are putting up,” Bogart said on “Fast Money.” “There’s a real risk that some of those companies could overtake some of Wall Street’s biggest banks if they don’t get in the market.”
On Wednesday, The New York Times reported that Goldman Sachs is moving ahead with its plans to open the first bitcoin-trading firm of any bank on Wall Street. The move comes at a time when many banks have shied away from the crypto craze over regulatory concerns.
Indeed, Bogart called the bank’s bet on bitcoin bullish and said it is “definitely a big step” for the crypto market.
“This market is so large you can’t ignore it anymore,” he said. “Now we’re seeing large banks roll out trading desks.”
Bitcoin, which peaked in mid-December at around $19,500 before falling to around $6,000 earlier this year, could exceed $50,000 this year, Bogart said. The popular cryptocurrency was priced above $9,700 on Friday morning.
Bogart predicted that within five years, “way more people will be newly buying bitcoin for the first time.”
Be the first to comment