Standard Chartered's crypto bull sticks to $100,000 bitcoin call despite 'painful' week

By Niket Nishant

June 4 (Reuters) - Geoffrey Kendrick, the global head of digital assets research at Standard Chartered and one of the most vocal crypto advocates, is sticking with his call for bitcoin to hit $100,000 by the end of the year as the bulk of the selling may be over.

The biggest crypto token has tumbled more than 12% in what Kendrick said was a "painful" week, after Michael Saylor's Strategy, the largest corporate holder of bitcoin, disclosed on Monday that it had sold some of the holdings for the first time since 2022.

"The timing of the sale was a shame," Kendrick wrote in a note to clients. "This week has been painful in crypto. There is really no other way of putting it."

The cryptocurrency has lost more than half its value since hitting a peak in October last year, even as President Donald Trump's administration has rolled out industry-friendly policies.

Kendrick said there is a risk of further selling pressure if bitcoin falls below $60,000, but given how sharply the currency has underperformed equities this year, there are now fewer bullish bets left to be unwound.

Bitcoin was last trading around $64,320. It has lost about 27% so far this year, while the S&P 500 index has jumped 10.4%. Data from LSEG showed that investors were pulling cash out of big bitcoin ETFs at the fastest pace on record, with more than $2 billion in net outflows in the week to Tuesday.

However, "when we look back at the end of 2026 with bitcoin at $100k we will say this was the buying zone we all wanted," Kendrick said.

He also expects an "aggressive" buying back of bitcoin from Strategy, citing that the company did so the last time it sold.

Strategy's bitcoin holdings have long been viewed as a proxy for Saylor's conviction in the industry. One of bitcoin's most influential evangelists, he once posted on X, "Sell a kidney if you must, but keep the Bitcoin."

The company said on Monday that proceeds from the sale of bitcoin would be used to fund distributions on its preferred stock. The sale represented just 0.004% of its total bitcoin holdings.

Strategy's bitcoin holding is worth nearly $54 billion, based on current prices.

However, "the significance is symbolic," said Fabien Yip, market analyst at IG Bank.

"Michael Saylor's 'never sell' position has been a cornerstone of bitcoin's bull narrative, and (the sale) raises questions about whether Strategy can meet preferred dividend obligations without further sale."

Strategy's stock has dropped about 17% in 2026. The stock gained nearly 14% between January and October last year, but later fell in tandem with the massive decline in bitcoin prices.

(Reporting by Niket Nishant in Bengaluru; Additional reporting by Amanda Cooper in London; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)