• BTC is expected to peak at $80,021 this year, before dropping to $71,415 by EOY.
• 46% say it's time to buy BTC, while 46% say it's time to hold.
• Three in five panelists (60%) are in favor of a BTC ETF, but more than one in five (22%) are against the idea.

PRESS RELEASE – Bitcoin (BTC) is predicted to crack US$80,000 this year, according to Finder.com's latest Bitcoin Price Predictions Report.

Finder.com's panel of 50 fintech specialists says BTC will peak at $80,021, with over a fifth (23%) thinking BTC will reach $100,000 or higher.

Now is the time to buy BTC, according to 46% of panelists, while an additional 46% say it's time to hold and just 8% say it's time to sell.

Gryphon Digital Mining CEO and director Rob Chang, who predicts BTC will peak at $111,000 this year, attributes his prediction to the onset of widespread Bitcoin adoption.

"I believe we are in the opening stages of rapid bitcoin adoption that will spread past El Salvador and Twitter and into more traditional areas. As this occurs, the general public will be increasingly exposed to bitcoin and this shift from obscurity into the mainstream will catapult bitcoin prices higher for the next few years,"

"Toss in halving events and we get structural reasons why the bitcoin price must head higher," he says.

However, the panel expects Bitcoin will dip to $71,415 per BTC by the end of the year. While this is a drop from the anticipated peak, it's still roughly a 20% increase from BTC's price at the time of writing.

Some panelists like Alex Nagorskii from DigitalX Ltd, who predicts BTC will end the year anywhere from $60,000-$99,000, say the approval of a BTC ETF will likely propel prices upward.

"We are expecting an SEC-approved Bitcoin ETF to be brought to market prior to the end of 2021. As such we expect a huge uplift in both the bitcoin price and its dominance in terms of percentage of total market capitalization," he says.

Nagorski is part of the 60% of panelists who say they are in favor of a BTC ETF, while 22% are against it and 18% are unsure.

Arcane Research analyst Vetle Lunde is also in favor of a BTC ETF and adds that "a futures-based ETF approval seems most likely, but anticipations leading into the final verdict of the physically-backed ETF filings could lead to surging prices,"

"Overall, I believe the ETF narrative will add momentum to Bitcoin, as we currently see."

University of East London associate professor Dr. Iwa Salami noted that the approval of an ETF would not only help current crypto investors diversify their portfolios, but would encourage more retail investors to invest in the digital asset.

"Bitcoin ETFs would be a way to give more retail investors the opportunity to invest in this asset class without necessarily understanding the technology or going through the rigors of setting up a cryptocurrency exchange account,"

"It would also help those who lack confidence in holding bitcoin directly, due to risks such as the potential of permanently losing them through the loss of the password of the wallet holding bitcoin and other digital assets," she said.

Panxora Crypto Hedge Fund general partner Gavin Smith is part of the 22% against a BTC ETF, saying there won't actually be a need for one in the future.

"An ETF is trying to fill the gap because of inadequate custody arrangements available for bitcoin holdings that made it unfit for certain financial institutions. As custody capabilities improve, the added layer of costs introduced by ETFs becomes less and less necessary."