Jeff Kendrick, who leads crypto research at Standard Chartered, shared his thoughts on retirement funds following the SEC’s recent approval of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs). He did not shy away from commenting on Ethereum, indicating that the approval process for an ETH ETF would likely follow a similar pattern to that of Bitcoin.
Standard Chartered’s Views on Bitcoin and Ethereum
Jeff Kendrick, at the helm of Standard Chartered’s team, participated in an interview on the Yahoo Finance Future Focus program, where he highlighted the strong performance of the two largest cryptocurrencies by market value, Bitcoin and Ethereum. He also pointed out an increase in investor confidence despite declines in inflation.
Actually, Bitcoin and Ethereum, and riskier assets in a broader sense, are in very good shape. I think the reason is that we know the cuts are coming because, most importantly, inflation is falling.
Setting aside Kendrick’s comments, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell recently stated that persistently high service-related prices are a source of concern for the markets.
Commenting on Powell’s views, some experts highlighted that policymakers at the central bank might want to see more relaxation and decline in service inflation before making any cuts to the base interest rates.
On the other hand, Kendrick pointed to the substantial amount of retirement funds poised to flow into Bitcoin ETFs. He mentioned that these funds could provide significant support to Bitcoin. Data from Statista for the second quarter of 2021 showed that assets in 401(k) retirement plans in the US had reached a value of $7.26 trillion.
Kendrick also maintained his hope that the Ethereum ETF would be approved in May, adding:
And now what we’ll see in the US is the 401(k) market, that is, pensions and the like, entering Bitcoin and other assets in this space for the first time when we get Ethereum in May.
Will the Ethereum ETF Be Approved in May?
Kendrick did not share his views on the SEC’s potential ETF approval for the first time. On January 31, Kendrick made a statement expressing his belief that the price of Ethereum would reach $4,000 before the ETF approval.
On the other hand, in December 2023, before the Spot Bitcoin ETF was approved on January 11, Steven Larsen, founder of Columbia Advisory Partners, told CNBC:
If the SEC gives a positive approval to spot Bitcoin ETFs as expected, more companies might decide to offer them in their 401(k) lineup.
