Business & Economics
$90K Bitcoin Triggers Wall-Street vs. Academia Valuation Showdown
As Bitcoin slipped back under $90,000 on 6-7 Dec 2025, economists led by Steve Hanke branded it “worth zero” while JPMorgan’s new model simultaneously pegged fair value near $170,000 within a year, exposing the widest mainstream valuation gap to date.
Focusing Facts
- Hanke repeated on 7 Dec 2025 that Bitcoin has “zero fundamental value,” echoing remarks made during its rebound past $90,000.
- JPMorgan’s 3 Dec 2025 volatility-adjusted BTC-to-gold model set a 6-12-month price target of roughly $170,000, assuming partial capture of gold’s $29.3 trn market.
- US spot-Bitcoin ETFs have posted net outflows in five of the last six weeks, with dolphin-cohort holdings shrinking from 965 k BTC to 694 k BTC since the $125 k peak.
Context
Markets periodically confront assets that defy classical valuation tools—think Dutch tulip bulbs in 1637, Internet stocks in 1999, or gold after the 1971 Nixon shock—each episode pitting skeptics quoting fundamentals against believers betting on new paradigms. Today’s Bitcoin standoff slots into that lineage: a synthetic commodity, birthed in 2009, now sits on corporate treasuries and in regulated ETFs, yet still gyrates 80 % annually. The tug-of-war between ‘zero’ and ‘$170k’ reflects two systemic forces: (1) financialization that lets Wall Street monetise volatility via ETFs and structured products, and (2) a parallel critique that code without cash flow cannot be priced like productive capital. On a 100-year horizon, this moment matters less for the quoted price than for whether digital scarcity becomes as socially embedded as gold did over millennia; the current valuation gulf signals society is still mid-verdict.
Perspectives
Skeptical economists and bearish crypto outlets
Skeptical economists and bearish crypto outlets — They interpret Bitcoin’s latest bounce as another speculative surge headed for a sharp reversal, stressing that the coin has “zero fundamental value” and could plunge toward lower support in the $80,000s. Long-time critics and doom-leaning sites gain attention by reaffirming their earlier warnings, so they spotlight every negative signal and discount bullish data to validate their prior calls.
Crypto-bullish investor publications
Crypto-bullish investor publications — They argue the drawdowns are noise before a powerful rally, projecting Bitcoin to hit $130,000-plus within the next year or two on ETF demand and inflation-hedge narratives. Outlets courting retail traders often favor optimistic price targets that spur clicks and portfolio action, glossing over the coin’s historic volatility and unproven inflation record.
Big-bank & mainstream finance analysts
Big-bank & mainstream finance analysts — They frame Bitcoin through traditional-asset lenses, linking its fair value to gold via volatility discounts and noting that fickle institutional flows leave the market highly unstable. Research desks and finance media balance caution with upside scenarios that can justify profitable bank products, so their ‘middle road’ may downplay extreme outcomes while positioning the bank as thought leader.