tl;dr
Arthur Hayes, Chief Investment Officer at Maelstrom and former BitMEX CEO, predicts Ethereum (ETH) could reach $10,000 by year-end, citing growing institutional adoption and shifting market sentiment. He compares ETH’s current position to Solana’s post-FTX collapse rally and urges investors to buy e...
Arthur Hayes, Chief Investment Officer at Maelstrom and former BitMEX CEO, has expressed a highly optimistic forecast for Ethereum (ETH), predicting the digital asset could soar to a new all-time high of $10,000 by the end of the year. In a July 23 blog post, Hayes described ETH as “the most hated large-cap crypto,” comparing its current market sentiment to Solana’s situation after FTX’s collapse in 2022, before Solana’s dramatic rise from $7 to $280. Hayes notes that momentum appears to be shifting in Ethereum’s favor.
He highlights Ethereum’s increasing adoption in corporate treasury strategies and the growing support from major Western institutional investors, including Fundstrat’s Tom Lee, as clear indicators of an upcoming rally. Hayes advises investors to act proactively, suggesting that mounting institutional confidence could spark a market breakout with his directive: “Buy first, ask questions later.”
While bullish on Ethereum’s prospects, Hayes also predicts that CryptoPunks NFTs have the potential to outperform ETH in dollar terms. He argues that profits gleaned from Ethereum holdings may be redirected into NFTs, serving as modern status symbols that reflect broader societal behaviors related to wealth and prestige. Hayes poses a thoughtful question about the role of the internet as a “status game,” drawing parallels to the world economy beyond essentials like food and energy.
This viewpoint resonates with Yat Siu, chairman of Animoca Brands, who likens NFTs to luxury goods such as Rolex watches and Birkin bags, purchased more for their cultural symbolism and sense of identity than functionality. CryptoPunks, launched in 2017 as one of the earliest NFT projects on Ethereum, have attained legendary status in digital art. At its market peak in 2021, the collection’s floor price averaged 125 ETH but declined drastically during the market downturn to a low of 21 ETH.
Recently, as the NFT market experiences a renaissance, CryptoPunks’ floor price has surged over 20% in the past week to 48 ETH, equivalent to roughly $177,000. This resurgence highlights not just renewed interest in NFTs but also the shifting dynamics within the broader cryptocurrency ecosystem.