12 Apr 2014 / Wall Street Journal – Growing Wall Street interest in bitcoin is likely to fuel a rebound in the price of the digital currency, according to panelists at the Inside Bitcoins conference in New York Tuesday.
Barry Silbert, chief executive officer of SecondMarket, which has created a private bitcoin-dedicated investment vehicle called the Bitcoin Investment Trust, said he could count ten hedge funds interested in investing in bitcoin, “each of which doesn’t get out bed if they don’t have $50 million.”
“So, I would not be surprised if there is something like $500 million in the float right now, and if there is $500 million waiting to move into this space, it will have a dramatic effect on the price,” Mr. Silbert said.
His comments come after the price of the digital has fallen sharply in recent months. Bitcoin’s price peaked at $1,147.25 on Dec. 4, according to an index provided by news provider Coindesk, but has since fallen to $450.61 due to the demands of the U.S. taxman and a string of negative news.
“These headlines – Russia, Mt. Gox, China – they don’t help these institutions, which are very, very focused on headline risk,” said Mr. Silbert. He was referring to Russia’s move to declare bitcoin illegal, the collapse of Tokyo-based bitcoin exchange Mt. Gox, and China’s recent ban on banks providing accounts to bitcoin businesses….. Read more
