Will Bitcoin Become the New Gold Standard?

Will Bitcoin Become the New Gold Standard?

All that glitters is not gold—but it might be Bitcoin.And in the long run, it might be more valuable.No less an expert than JPMorgan Chase & Co. said that Bitcoin could trade as high as $146,000 if it is viewed as a safe haven rivaling gold. Growing interest in Bitcoin sent its price to a record high of $34,800 on Jan. 2. The cryptocurrency recently changed hands at $34,675.20. Gold recently fetched $1,939 an ounce, down $11.50.Cryptocurrency enthusiasts have argued that bitcoin, an asset defined as highly volatile, should be considered a safe heaven.

Shutterstock

"Bitcoin's competition with gold has already started in our mind, as evidenced by the more than $3 billion of inflows into the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust and the more than $7 billion of outflows from gold (exchange traded funds) since mid-October," JPMorgan said in a research report.A growing number of investors now view the digital currency both as an inflation hedge and as an alternative to the declining value of the dollar, the world's reserve currency.The investment bank said that Bitcoin presents a growing challenge to gold."There is little doubt that this competition with gold as an 'alternative' currency will continue over the coming years," JPMorgan said, "given