Bitcoin is hurtling toward its record high of $69,000. Experts see 200,000 in sight

Bitcoin’s most recent rally has brought it within an arm's reach of its all-time-high, but some experts say that this is just the beginning.

The most popular cryptocurrency surged as high as $63,100, according to CoinGecko, before slightly retreating on Friday afternoon. The coin is now up more than 30% year-to-date and nearly 170% compared to this time last year.

It is now only a few thousand dollars from its record high of $69,044 reached at the height of the crypto bull market in 2021, and experts predict this cycle could finally lift Bitcoin above the coveted six-figure mark.

The approval of mainstream financial institutions issuing ETFs, such as BlackRock and Fidelity, has helped drive investors to the cryptocurrency, Steven Lubka, managing director and head of private clients at Swan Bitcoin, told Fortune. The exchange-traded products have made it easier than before for retail money to buy in and for people to add Bitcoin exposure to their retirement accounts, which has helped convince some naysayers, he added.

“People that have been skeptical are now open-minded,” Lubka said.

Although Lubka warned that nobody has a crystal ball, he said Bitcoin could reach $300,000 during the next year-and-a-half thanks to Bitcoin ETF inflows. That cash influx has been fueled in part by marketing and promotion on the part of the issuers. Yet, the ETFs have only been trading for about two months, Lubka said, and there is much more that the firms have in store.

“I have it on pretty good authority that the promotion hasn't even really started yet,” he said. “We're in the first inning of their marketing efforts. I have this direct from some of the issuers.”