Bitcoin Could Hit $150K This Year, Says Fundstrat's Tom Lee

Bitcoin (BTC) may have stalled over the past week, but FundStrat head of research Tom Lee doubled down on his bullish outlook and said it could reach as high as $150,000 this year.

"You have demand improving with the new ETFs, you have supply shrinking with the halving, and if monetary policy eases which we expect, that's supportive for risk assets," Lee told CNBC on Wednesday.

Lee's comments came as bitcoin's rally appeared to lose some steam following a 35% gain over the past couple of weeks to $53,000, its highest price in 26 months. It was recently changing hands at $50,900, down 1.8% over the past 24 hours, holding up slightly better than the broader-market CoinDesk20 Index's (CD20) 3% decline during the same period.

Lee isn't worried. "Bitcoin's been holding up ," he said "I do not think a drawdown is going to start that soon."

However, other analysts suggested that BTC may cool down for a while.

Joel Kruger, market strategist at LMAX Group, suggested caution in the short term, noting potential volatility due to shifting central bank policies and fallout from global macro weakness, which could temporarily impact crypto markets. He added that any downturn would provide an opportunity for taking strategic positions.

Analytics firm Swissblock said in a Wednesday market update that bitcoin's big picture is still bullish, but may experience a pullback to lower prices first before resuming its uptrend.

"While the prevailing sentiment suggests a potential continuation of the upward trajectory, the current scenario may necessitate a period of consolidation or even a retracement to the $47.5k support level," Swissblock analysts said. "This adjustment would serve to alleviate excess volatility and reinforce market stability before potential further upside moves."