Bitcoin (BTC) Can Hit $1M Says IBM Blockchain Chief

Jesse Lund, IBM’s VP of Blockchain and Digital Currencies, as the VP of the blockchain division is bound to have some optimistic thoughts on the cryptocurrency space. But in an interview at Think Conference, he made a particularly bullish prediction for Bitcoin.

The interview, a lengthy one with entrepreneur Fred Schebesta, touched upon several subjects in the discussion. But the most notable statement arrived when Lund was asked about the future of cryptocurrencies.

I have a long-term outlook.… It goes back to that discussion about the utility of the network with a higher price. I see Bitcoin at a million dollars someday. I like that number because if Bitcoin’s at a million dollars, then the satoshi is on value parity with the US penny. And that means there’s over $20 trillion of liquidity in this network. Think about $20 trillion in liquidity and how that changes things like corporate payments.

That’s no small sum – even the most ardent of Bitcoin enthusiasts like Tim Draper have more conservative targets for Bitcoin, $250,000. Lund’s short-term outlook is a little different though, saying that Bitcoin’s value by New Year’s Eve should be closer to the region of $5,000.                

IBM has begun using Stellar’s token XLM (for which Grayscale Investments has launched a trust), and Lund believes that it will be ideal for cross-border settlements:

Once that happens, and that happens really fast, then we send the value along with it. That transfer of value is made possible by digital instruments, settlement instruments, of which Lumens is one. So we see Lumens as a viable settlement instrument in this ecosystem of cross-border payments.

IBM uses the Stellar protocol in its World Wire product, which hopes to make cross-border payments happen in near real-time. Indeed, cross-border payments are considered to be one of the most applicable areas for cryptocurrencies and IBM is looking to be a part of this change.

IBM is on the whole very enthusiastic about blockchain, also working with SeaGate to reduce hard drive counterfeiting. Lund also said that IBM is keen on working with different assets, seeing benefits in an ecosystem of assets that assist cross-border payments.