Ethereum To ‘Exceed’ Bitcoin But Both Could Be Left In The Dust By Cardano

Bitcoin and cryptocurrency prices have traded sideways this week after surging higher through early August—even as bankers predict a “seismic” financial shit toward crypto.

The bitcoin price has failed to find footing over $50,000 per bitcoin, dropping back towards $45,000. The second-largest cryptocurrency by value, ethereum, which has outperformed bitcoin over the last year, has also struggled—dropping back toward $3,000 per ether token this week.

With crypto traders and investors desperately looking for direction, the chief executive of financial advisory group deVere has said he expects ethereum to continue to outpace bitcoin this year and has given cardano’s ADA token a September price target of $3, up 16% from its current price.

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“Cardano is now just behind the major headline grabbers bitcoin and ethereum,” deVere’s CEO Nigel Green said in emailed comments this week. “I believe that the price of cardano will reach all-time highs in the next month, hitting more than $3.”

Green points to “three main drivers” pushing the cardano price higher, including the “broader crypto market rally,” a closely-watched September upgrade that will give cardano smart contract functionality similar to ethereum, and cardano’s green energy credentials compared to bitcoin and other similar energy-intensive cryptocurrencies.

Earlier this month, Green said he expects ethereum, worth a combined $365 billion, to eventually eclipse the market capitalization of bitcoin, currently worth more than twice as much at almost $900 billion.

Green pointed to ethereum’s “higher level of real-use potential” and “investor enthusiasm for the game-changing transition to ETH 2.0.” The long-awaited ethereum upgrade, designed to make its blockchain more scalable, sustainable and secure, was begun late last year and isn’t expected to be completed until well into 2022.

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Elsewhere, bitcoin and crypto market watchers are feeling upbeat about the bitcoin price due to a number of recent positive developments.

“From the lows of July, when the price briefly dipped below $30,000, the rate is up 72%, peaking at the start of the week, so a corrective pullback offsets some of the short-term overheating,” Alex Kuptsikevch, senior financial analyst at FxPro, said in emailed comments and pointing to a recovery in bitcoin’s computing power after China’s latest crackdown and banking giant Citigroup

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eyeing regulatory approval to launch bitcoin futures trading on the CME.

“Further declines down to $42,000-$44,000 are not beyond the market’s usual pullbacks, but a deeper dive would bring back a more negative scenario.”