The price of one bitcoin will reach $2000 by the end of 2014, a venture capitalist has predicted - a 226pc increase from the virtual currency's present value.
Speaking at CoinSummit in London on Thursday, Geoff Lewis, a partner at the Founders Fund, said he will be "really bullish when there is low volatility" but estimates that the value of one bitcoin will soar during the next five months.
On Thursday afternoon, Bitcoin was trading at around $615, compared to almost $1,200 at the end of November. After a clampdown on the currency by Chinese authorities in May and the collapse of online exchange MtGox, its value has fallen steadily in the last six months.
However, other industry experts agreed with the optimistic price predictions made by Mr Lewis. Millionaire investor Roger Ver, who has been called "Bitcoin Jesus" because of his backing of businesses involving the currency, said that he expects the price to boom.
"I actually think $2000 is a pretty conservative estimate," he told The Telegraph. "We don't know for sure if it's going to happen in this year, but there's no doubt in my mind that Bitcoin's price is going to be thousands of dollars and, almost for sure, tens of thousands of dollars for one."
Mr Ver, who in December 2013 donated 1,000 bitcoins to the Foundation for Economic Education, first became involved with Bitcoin in 2011, when it was priced at $1 per unit.
"Currently, there are not enough bitcoins for every person in England to have one, and it is a worldwide currency that can be used by any person on the entire planet," he said."
"If there are not even enough for each person in England to have one, the price of Bitcoin is going to have to be a heck of a lot more than it is today."
There are now over 13m bitcoins in circulation, and analysts predict that there will be 8m user wallets by the end of the year.
Speaking at CoinSummit in London on Thursday, Geoff Lewis, a partner at the Founders Fund, said he will be "really bullish when there is low volatility" but estimates that the value of one bitcoin will soar during the next five months.
On Thursday afternoon, Bitcoin was trading at around $615, compared to almost $1,200 at the end of November. After a clampdown on the currency by Chinese authorities in May and the collapse of online exchange MtGox, its value has fallen steadily in the last six months.
However, other industry experts agreed with the optimistic price predictions made by Mr Lewis. Millionaire investor Roger Ver, who has been called "Bitcoin Jesus" because of his backing of businesses involving the currency, said that he expects the price to boom.
Mr Ver, who in December 2013 donated 1,000 bitcoins to the Foundation for Economic Education, first became involved with Bitcoin in 2011, when it was priced at $1 per unit.
"Currently, there are not enough bitcoins for every person in England to have one, and it is a worldwide currency that can be used by any person on the entire planet," he said."
"If there are not even enough for each person in England to have one, the price of Bitcoin is going to have to be a heck of a lot more than it is today."
There are now over 13m bitcoins in circulation, and analysts predict that there will be 8m user wallets by the end of the year.
Source Bitcoin
