Most people don’t think about the Federal Reserve very often, and very few think about the impact of the US central bank on investors. But in the last few years, that started to change. Many economists and avid market watchers believe that years of accommodative monetary policy by the Federal Reserve (Fed) and other central banks after the global financial crisis (GFC) have created “all bubbles”. claims to have helped
Not all bubble ideas are new. Years before the stock market woes of 2022, Wall Street heavyweights, including legendary investor Jeremy Grantham, were warning of a brewing “superbubble.” Near-zero interest rates and quantitative easing (QE) (a policy in which the Fed purchases mortgage-backed securities and government bonds to encourage lending and investment in the economy) pushes investors toward riskier investments and unsustainable business models that thrived on cheap debt, spurring a “furiously unhealthy” surge in housing prices.
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It’s still early days, but looking back, this era of easy money has come with many outlandish financial predictions. And with inflation continuing to rage and fears of a recession growing, the impact on Americans is not as great. However, there are bright spots in the financial industry. Every bubble has provided some of the most ridiculous and hilarious predictions in history.
From cryptocurrency experts and hedge fund managers to economists and investment bankers, the easy money era was filled with bulls who believed the good times would never end. Let’s take a look at some of their weirdest calls.
bitcoin bulls
The cryptocurrency boom of 2020 and 2021 was unprecedented. Between January 2020 and the peak of the crypto craze in November 2021, the industry’s total value exceeded his $3 trillion, and Bitcoin’s price rose nearly 800%.
Crypto believers believed the party was just getting started. Billionaire venture capitalist Tim Draper said in June 2021 that Bitcoin will hit $250,000 by the end of 2022. CNBCof Jade Scipio.
Bitcoin will finish just above $16,500 in 2022, but last month Draper reiterated his call for Bitcoin to reach $250,000.
Draper said, “We expect a flight to high-quality decentralized cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and some of the weaker cryptocurrencies to become relics.” CNBC.
Tim Draper did not respond luckrequest for comment.
Draper wasn’t the only major figure to jump on the Bitcoin train and make lofty predictions in the easy money era. As a division, it was the first public asset manager to gain exposure to Bitcoin through the Bitcoin Investment Trust (GBTC).
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The bet has led Wood to face some serious criticism from his peers, but aside from the brief crypto winter of 2018, bitcoin’s price is expected to rise above $65,000 by November 2021. We were rewarded because we soared.
Wood was confident that the good times would continue during the bull market. In November 2020 she said BaronCrypto adoption by institutions will push the price of Bitcoin to $500,000 by 2026, repeatedly “buying the decline” each time the price of Bitcoin falls. globe and mail In a February 2020 interview, she said Bitcoin was “one of the biggest positions” in her retirement account.
The CEO of ARK Invest remained bullish even in early 2022, when the price of Bitcoin fell from highs above $65,000 to just under $50,000. US dollars, claimed in ARK’s “Big Ideas 2022” annual research report.
Since then, bitcoin’s price has fallen more than 60%, but Wood and her team are unfazed and still believe their predictions are fair.
“We think bitcoin is out of this rose smell,” said Wood. bloomberg In December, the institution claimed it would eventually buy bitcoin after a “battle test” by the cryptocurrency winter.
Kathy Wood did not respond luckrequest for comment.
Tom Lee, head of research at Fundstrat Global Advisors and former Chief Equity Strategist at JP Morgan, who spent more than 25 years on Wall Street, is also a Bitcoin bull. In early 2022, he predicted that Bitcoin will reach $200,000 in the next few years.
And despite the recent decline, which he admitted was “terrifying” for investors, Lee said. CNBC In November, we still believe Bitcoin will break out of its current downtrend and hit its target. We’re backtracking on some of their estimates.
Tom Lee did not respond luckrequest for comment.
lofty stock market predictions
Investment banks made some pretty dramatic predictions in an era when money was cheap. After the stock market surged during the pandemic, returning 28% of his stake to investors, Wall Street said he believed things would slow down in 2022, but not as much as it did. .
Investment banks expect the S&P 500 to end 2022 at 4,825, up just 1% for the year. Instead, the blue chip index fell about 20%.
The (perhaps unwarranted) bullishness of investment banks was particularly evident when looking at target prices for growth stocks that have benefited from pandemic trends. For example, his Carvana, an online used-car retailer, skyrocketed during the pandemic as used-car prices rose to record highs.
The company has been able to capitalize on consumers’ inability or unwillingness to buy cars directly due to the coronavirus, prompting some analysts to make incredibly bullish forecasts. I was.
In January 2022, Morgan Stanley auto analyst Adam Jonas called the Calvana “the top predator of auto retail” and set a 12-month price target of $430. Since then, the online auto retailer’s shares have plummeted more than 97% to just $4.48. Some analysts believe more pain lies ahead for investors.
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Morgan Stanley did not respond luckrequest for comment.
New Construct CEO David Trainer warned investors in June that Carvana was consuming cash at an unsustainable pace and may not survive.
“Time is running out for companies with easy access to capital and burning cash to survive,” Trainor said. luck“These ‘zombie’ companies are on the brink of bankruptcy.”
Coinbase is another example of the craze that has developed on Wall Street over the past few years. When the cryptocurrency exchange went public in April 2021, the stock surged from a reference price of $250 to $381 per share.
CNBC’s Jim Cramer, a former hedge fund manager, posted on Twitter after the IPO: say it “I like Coinbase at $475,” he said. And he’s not the only one, the investment bank’s exchange average price target was above $400 per share in early 2021.
Since then, however, Coinbase stock has fallen over 90% during the crypto winter. And Kramer changed his mind, December 13th Tweet He “wasn’t a Coinbase buyer here,” calling it “premature.”
CNBC did not respond luckrequest for comment.
The era of cheap money may have led many forecasters to assume asset prices will continue to soar regardless of valuations, but this year has proven to be a wake-up call. Wall Street analysts have cut price targets for many of the stock market’s pandemic darlings. It’s a new era for markets and forecasters, as said by Tim Pagliara, chief investment officer at investment advisory firm CapWealth. luck last month.
“I’m going to disentangle a lot of the speculation,” he said. “There will be a lot of re-evaluation of everything from commercial real estate to how investors view things like crypto.