Bitcoin Predicted to Reach $180,000 by Year-End, Says VanEck Report

On August 18, 2025, VanEck, an ETF and mutual fund manager, released an insightful report analyzing Bitcoin's price trends from mid-July to mid-August. Analysts Nathan Frankovitz and Matthew Sigel forecast that Bitcoin (BTC) will hit $180,000 by the end of this year. They also observed varying performances among Bitcoin mining companies and noted a decrease in the market net asset value (mNAV) of Digital Asset Treasuries (DATs).

Key Takeaways

VanEck predicts Bitcoin will reach $180,000 by year-end.
The price of Bitcoin hit new heights in mid-August, supported by bullish signals from futures markets.
Demand from corporations is driving significant BTC acquisitions.
Ethereum's rise has caused Bitcoin's market dominance to decline.
Mining hashrate and miner revenue are at record highs, while some mining companies are facing stock price challenges.

Bitcoin price will hit $180,000 by the year-end, VanEck report suggests

Bitcoin Price Analysis and Predictions

On August 18, 2025, VanEck, recognized for managing ETFs and mutual funds, released a detailed report examining Bitcoin price movements between mid-July and mid-August. Analysts Nathan Frankovitz and Matthew Sigel believe that Bitcoin's price will reach $180,000 by the year's end. They point out differing performances among Bitcoin mining firms and a decline in the market net asset value of Digital Asset Treasuries.

In a record-breaking moment on August 13, 2025, Bitcoin's price surpassed its previous peak from July by a few hundred dollars. The report highlights more bullish indicators from Bitcoin futures markets, with the CME basis funding rates hitting 9%, marking the highest level seen in six months.

Significantly, the options market indicated a rising interest in Bitcoin as seen from the call/put ratio peaking at 3.21x, reflecting increasing demand for BTC. According to VanEck, this figure is the highest since June 2024. Furthermore, call premiums totaled $792 million, which is a 37% increase from the previous 30-day period.

Demand from Corporations

Growing corporate interest is a key driver of this upward trend. In July alone, exchange-traded products (primarily ETFs) and Digital Asset Treasuries acquired 54,000 BTC and 72,000 BTC, respectively. This marks a notable increase compared to the 131,355 BTC purchased by DATs in the three months of Q2 2025.

VanEck noted that a surge in Ethereum’s popularity contributed to Bitcoin's market dominance dropping from 64.5% to 59.7%. Additionally, the Bitcoin network has seen a notable uptick in transactions, reaching 12.9 million—the highest since November 2024—with median transaction fees decreasing by 13%.

The accompanying graph to the VanEck report illustrates a jump in overall transfer volume, which reached an impressive $77.7 billion—a 34% rise over the previous month and a 60% increase from one year earlier.

Mining Insights

In August, Bitcoin mining hashrate reached a historic peak of 902 EH/s, with revenue per EH/s hitting $59,400, the highest observed in eight months. Although the amount of BTC miners are sending to exchanges has nearly doubled since August 2024, it only grew by 16% compared to mid-July.

When looking at mining companies, there is a divide in equity performance. For instance, Applied Digital Corporation (APLD) saw a 54% increase, and Bitfarms (BITF) grew by 16%, while many competitors experienced growth below 10% or faced price declines. Notably, Cipher Mining Inc. (CIFR) saw its stock price drop by 22%, while an index tracking 13 mining companies fell by 4%. U.S.-based mining operations accounted for a remarkable 31% share.

Declines in Digital Asset Treasuries

VanEck assessed that public treasury companies hold a total of 951,000 BTC. However, they raised concerns about the performance of Digital Asset Treasuries, noting declines in their market net asset values (mNAVs). For instance, mNAVs dropped for MSTR (-16%), MTPLF (-62%), and SMLR (-12%). This decline suggests that for these companies, their net asset value is decreasing relative to their liabilities, thereby complicating their ability to raise additional capital and acquire more BTC, especially given the current market conditions.

Emerging Trends

Another trend observed in the report is a remarkable 43% increase in ordinals minted on the Bitcoin blockchain over a 30-day period, totaling 109,779 ordinals minted—up 120% compared to August 2024. This rise signifies ongoing discussions about potentially removing the 83-byte-per-block limit for arbitrary data on the Bitcoin blockchain. This change will be implemented for Bitcoin Core nodes in October, possibly leading to more ordinals per block but also slowing monetary transactions.

Looking ahead, VanEck warns of a possible spike in market volatility that could lead to significant price fluctuations due to dealer hedging. They anticipate a further downturn in DAT mNAVs, given their limited capital-raising abilities stemming from a prolonged period of low volatility. Despite evaluating both bearish and bullish scenarios, the analysts maintain their prediction of Bitcoin reaching $180,000 by year-end.

It's notable that Matt Sigel previously forecasted Bitcoin would reach $180,000 in Q1 2025, but it only peaked below $110,000 during that period, followed by a 25% drop in April. Consequently, with the current Bitcoin price significantly exceeding the December 2024 price, the $180,000 prediction appears far less optimistic than before.