Standard Chartered cut its 2026 Bitcoin (BTC) price target from $150,000 to $100,000 on Thursday, February 12, as the Crypto Fear & Greed Index plunged to nearly historic lows of 8 out of 100.
This was the bank’s second downgrade in three months (in December, it had already reduced its target from an earlier $300,000). As reported by Bloomberg, it cited persistent exchange-traded fund (ETF) outflows, a weakening macroeconomic backdrop, and delayed Federal Reserve rate cuts as key headwinds.
“We expect further price capitulation in the next few months,” wrote Geoffrey Kendrick, Standard Chartered’s global head of digital assets research.
Indeed, the cryptocurrency has lost nearly half of its value since its October peak above $126,000, while investors have withdrawn nearly $8 billion from U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs (roughly 100,000 BTC). Together, these stats underscore fading risk appetite across crypto markets.
At press time, Bitcoin was trading at $67,870, but Kendrick also noted the world’s largest cryptocurrency could drop to $50,000 before stabilizing.
Bitcoin outlook negative
While drastic at first glance, the downgrade actually follows months of turbulence across the market. ‘Digital gold’ has struggled since a sharp selloff in October, and Kendrick noted that the macro environment is becoming more challenging.
More specifically, while the U.S. economy shows signs of softening, markets are not pricing in additional Federal Reserve rate cuts until later this year, when Kevin Warsh is expected to assume the role of Fed chair.
Hardly bullish on other fronts, Standard Chartered has also slashed its Ethereum (ETH) price target from $7,500 to $4,000, which is still more than 50% upside from the current price of $1,980. As with BTC, the firm expects it could fall further before rebounding, with $1,400 as a rough estimate.
Nonetheless, the lender argued that the downturn appears more orderly than previous crypto crashes. In Kendrick’s words, the selloff has been ‘less extreme’ and has ‘not seen the collapse of any digital asset platforms,’ concluding that the market is showing signs of gradual maturation.
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