With Bitcoin pushing toward new highs, market participants are speculating on what comes next. Bitwise CEO Hunter Horsley recently weighed in, offering a bold take on potential shifts in holder behavior.
The exec believes Bitcoin could enter a new phase of market behavior once it surpasses the $130,000 to $150,000 range.
In a tweet posted this week, Horsley noted that while the cryptocurrency is currently hovering around $100,000, long-term holders who accumulated BTC at much lower prices are still selling portions of their holdings. However, he argued that this trend will diminish once Bitcoin breaks into new all-time high territory.
According to Horsley, at that point, rather than selling, holders will increasingly opt to borrow against their Bitcoin through a growing number of lenders in the space. This shift, he said, will tighten supply and push prices even higher.
“There’s simply not going to be enough Bitcoin,” Horsley added, suggesting a future scenario where rising demand and limited sell-side pressure drive the upward momentum. His comments reflect growing market anticipation that the next major breakout could mark a transition from distribution to accumulation.
Meanwhile, Bitcoin’s recovery triggered a surge in bullish sentiment among retail investors who have been mostly absent during this cycle. This was indicative in Santiment’s recent update, which found that positive Bitcoin-related commentary across social media now outpaces negative mentions by more than two-to-one, a level of optimism not seen since Donald Trump’s election over seven months ago.
However, analysts caution that rising greed and retail enthusiasm may signal a market top. The Fear and Greed Index supports this with a score of 71.
Long-term holders continue accumulating while also taking daily profits nearing $930 million. Whales, for one, have remained patient and are expecting higher prices. Analysts argue Bitcoin’s fixed supply could benefit from monetary instability as US debt ceiling tensions rise.