Zhitong Finance and Economics APP learned that Larry Fink, CEO of the world's largest asset management institution BlackRock, recently said in an interview that he has turned from a proud skeptic of Bitcoin (BTC-USD) to someone who believes that this cryptocurrency will have a place in people's investment portfolios. Fink also imitated the enthusiasts of cryptocurrencies and called Bitcoin "digital gold", even saying he "believes" that the outlook for Bitcoin will be very optimistic, emphasizing his worries about the US government's deficit problem, and also stating that Bitcoin is expected to become a hedge tool in the US political situation uncertainty.

The leader of the world's largest asset management institution had long held an extremely skeptical attitude towards bitcoin, but in an interview on Monday, he comprehensively outlined his changed views on bitcoin. Fink said on Monday that his long-standing position on bitcoin was to be a "proud skeptic", but after a deep study of bitcoin, and until the spot Bitcoin ETF was approved and issued, he realized that his previous views were "wrong".

During his interview on Monday, the bitcoin trading price reached its highest point in about two weeks, pushed up by the "Trump trading trend". The US presidential candidate and former president Trump is fully supportive of the development of the cryptocurrency industry.

Trump has repeatedly stated during his campaign that he will fully support cryptocurrencies and will speak at the Bitcoin conference in Nashville in July. In mid-June, he also met with many representatives of American Bitcoin mining companies to express his support for encrypted mining business. In May of this year, the Trump campaign team began to accept donations from the cryptocurrency industry, and his views on this type of digital asset have become increasingly positive.

Kyle Rodda, senior financial market analyst at Capital.com, said that after the shooting incident occurred, he saw many customers flow funds into Bitcoin and gold. Cryptocurrencies did accelerate their rise over the weekend of the shooting. He said: "This news marks a change in the norms of US politics, and an emergency of greater political violence. For the market, this means safe-haven trading, but more will tend to non-traditional safe-haven assets such as Bitcoin."

It is understood that Larry Fink, the "leader" of BlackRock, said in an interview that "Bitcoin is a legitimate financial tool that can give you returns that are not unrelated and have low risk association," and on the same day, BlackRock released its second-quarter profits and revenue size, both exceeding Wall Street analysts' expectations. The institution also said that its total assets under management increased by $1.2 trillion year-on-year, reaching $10.6 trillion, and continues to be the world's largest asset management institution.

It is understood that the world's largest asset management institution, BlackRock, manages and operates the iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT.US), which has attracted over $19 billion in assets since its launch in January this year and has been stably sitting atop the Bitcoin ETF fund size in the US stock market since its inception.

Fink said: "I firmly believe that bitcoin plays an important role in the investment portfolio." He also labeled this cryptocurrency with a market value of $1.26 trillion as "digital gold". He said: "I think when you panic, you should invest in this tool, especially when you believe that some countries are causing their currency to depreciate due to excessive deficits." He said that bitcoins are also suitable for investors who are looking for investment tools that are not controlled by national governments.

As for Fink's latest remarks, his attitude towards Bitcoin can be said to have undergone a 360-degree reversal. In 2017, Fink called Bitcoin a "money laundering index" at a meeting of the International Finance Association, but his attitude towards Bitcoin has visibly warmed up over the years. In 2020, he told the American Council on Foreign Relations that Bitcoin is likely to "evolve" into a global market asset.

Since last week, the price of Bitcoin has rebounded sharply. The trading price of Bitcoin is currently hovering around 0.064 million dollars, a significant rebound from the phased low on July 5th. Some cryptocurrency traders are betting heavily on Bitcoin hitting a new historical high before the end of the year, as they remain optimistic about the Fed's bet on at least two interest rate cuts this year, as well as the inflow of funds into Bitcoin ETFs on exchanges.

Last month, analysts at Standard Chartered Bank stated that the US presidential election is the next key catalyst for Bitcoin prices, and Trump's victory may push the price of Bitcoin up to 0.15 million dollars before the end of the year.

Galaxy Digital's founder and CEO Michael Novogratz said that a more positive political environment for digital assets in the USA may help push bitcoin to reach a record-breaking $100,000 by the end of this year, or even higher. He said in an interview, "If the bitcoin price rises to $73,000 in the next few weeks, it will rise to $100,000 or higher by the end of this year."