America: 1,200 USD in COVID-19 relief has turned into 21,000 USD if buying Bitcoin

It has been more than 5 years since the American government issued COVID-19 support checks worth 1,200 USD. For many people in America, that money was used to cover daily living expenses such as rent, food, and bills.

However, if a person at that time decided to invest all of this money into Bitcoin and patiently held it until now, that small investment has turned into about 21,617 USD — an incredible increase of 1,701%.

This number is based on the first support tranche of the economic stimulus package CARES Act. If someone bought Bitcoin on April 15, 2020, when the price was around 6,642 USD, then with 1,200 USD they could own 0.18 BTC. Today, when the price of Bitcoin has surpassed 120,000 USD, that amount of Bitcoin has multiplied in profit — and the trend shows no signs of stopping.

The story becomes even more interesting when considering the subsequent support packages: 600 USD in January 2021 and 1,400 USD in March 2021. If the entire 3,200 USD support had been converted to Bitcoin at that time, the value of the holdings could exceed 50,000 USD now, depending on BTC price fluctuations.

No matter what price they buy at, investors who are patient enough to endure strong volatility phases — from declines to surges — have been justly rewarded.

Is Bitcoin heading towards 150,000 USD?

The value explosion of Bitcoin over the past 5 years is driven by three main factors: institutional capital inflow, increasing acceptance in mainstream life, and the macroeconomic context driving investors towards cryptocurrency.

As we enter October, historical data shows that the early quarter period often brings strong upward momentum for Bitcoin. Since 2015, October has averaged a 21.8% increase, while November has reached 10.8%. If this trend repeats, Bitcoin could very well surpass 150,000 USD before the end of this year.

Additionally, Citigroup analysts this week released a positive outlook, raising the 12-month target for Bitcoin to 181,000 USD, while adjusting the end-of-year 2025 forecast to 132,000 USD. The bank emphasized strong capital flows, estimated to reach 7.5 billion USD by the end of the year, along with increased demand from financial institutions.

"We are more optimistic about Bitcoin than Ether, as Bitcoin is attracting a large portion of the new capital flowing into the cryptocurrency market," Citi's analysis team wrote.

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