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Coinbase Global Inc. COIN CEO Brian Armstrong said on Sunday that Bitcoin’s (CRYPTO: BTC) long-term price performance is primarily a measure of how much people “fear” inflation.
‘Structural’ Problems With Bitcoin
Armstrong responded to venture capitalist Chamath Palihapitiya’s take on the “structural” headwinds impacting Bitcoin.
Palihapitiya argued that “marginal liquidity” is now chasing prediction and equity markets over cryptocurrency.
This argument has gained some traction lately, as Bitcoin’s decline has coincided with sharp rallies in AI, semiconductor, and space stocks. Similarly, prediction markets such as Polygon and Kalshi attracted significant investments in 2026, each reaching multi-billion-dollar valuations.
He then suggested that the “marginal energy” to mine Bitcoin becomes 10-20x more valuable if allocated to AI compute. This disparity has driven major public Bitcoin miners, including MARA Holdings Inc. , to target AI and high-performance computing contracts. Armstrong then chimed in on the conversation, stating that capital rotation to prediction markets and stocks is “temporary” while energy reallocation from Bitcoin mining to AI computing is more structural. That said, he added that Bitcoin mining hash power and energy use do not influence its price, as the network’s difficulty adjustment automatically maintains consistent block times even if miners leave. “Long term, Bitcoin price is mostly a measure of how much people fear inflation, and there seems to no end in sight to democracies everywhere running deficits,” the cryptocurrency billionaire stated.Armstrong Partially Agrees
Is Bitcoin Truly Digital Gold?
Armstrong has long been a strong advocate for Bitcoin. Last week, he acknowledged that the asset’s original vision as peer-to-peer electronic cash has evolved, and it has now become a store of value, or “digital gold.”
He remains strongly bullish on Bitcoin despite its underperformance this year, projecting a "much higher" price for the asset by 2030.
Price Action: At the time of writing, BTC was exchanging hands at $64,069.14, down 1.22% over the last 24 hours, according to data from Benzinga Pro.
Photo courtesy: Shutterstock By Thrive Studios ID
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This article Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong Says Bitcoin Will 'Mostly' Be a Measure of Inflation Fears in the Long Term originally appeared on Benzinga.com.
