Hayes: 99% of Altcoins Could Go to Zero

At Consensus Miami 2026, BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes has warned that the vast majority of altcoins are destined to fail while predicting Bitcoin could reach $125,000 by the end of the year. 

However, he framed this massive wipeout as a healthy and necessary market-clearing process.

Hayes likened this inevitable purge to the historic turnover seen in the S&P 500 since 1929. Despite forecasting a brutal flush of excess projects, Hayes maintained that the underlying altcoin ecosystem will survive.

Money printing over regulation 

When it comes to Bitcoin’s trajectory, Hayes’s outlook is tied strictly to global liquidity rather than legislative milestones. He expressed little excitement for the much-anticipated Clarity Act, arguing that regulatory bills will not move the needle without the engine of global money printing.

For Bitcoin to hit $125,000 year-end target, Hayes pointed to one singular catalyst: more money printing. “It is that simple. I try to make it very simple,” he explained.

Hayes defines Bitcoin as a unique hybrid of a tech stock and raw liquidity, stressing that in the current macroeconomic environment, liquidity is the only metric that truly matters. 

He expects the Federal Reserve, the U.S. Treasury, and global central banks to continue releasing liquidity by printing money and purchasing bonds. If this thesis plays out, Hayes believes this continuous flow of capital will propel Bitcoin higher, easily overpowering potential economic headwinds such as AI-driven deflation.

Breaking the four-year cycle 

During a recent interview with Kyle Chasse, where he firmly rejected the popular four-year crypto market cycle theory. Instead of relying on historical halving timelines, his models are driven entirely by macroeconomic factors.

He noted that the broader market is currently underestimating the massive upside potential of both traditional stocks and cryptocurrencies, as governments worldwide harbor a strong, inescapable need to print fiat currency. Because of this dynamic, Hayes believes Bitcoin will continue to drastically outperform the S&P 500 and other traditional assets.