Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan says Bitcoin’s total addressable market could surpass the roughly $34 trillion gold market if the asset becomes widely used both as a currency and as a store of value. He points to recent events around Iran—where proposals to accept crypto for Strait of Hormuz tolls highlighted Bitcoin’s currency-like utility—as evidence that its role can extend beyond simply competing with gold.
Hougan argues that, in a world where governments can block or weaponize traditional financial rails, Bitcoin can function as an apolitical alternative, which broadens its potential market. He has previously modeled scenarios in which Bitcoin captures about 17% of the store-of-value market over the next decade, a level that would imply a price near $1 million per coin; if Bitcoin also assumes an international-currency role, those targets would likely increase.
At the time of Hougan’s remarks, Bitcoin was trading near $74,500 with a market capitalization around $1.4 trillion. By comparison, gold trades around $4,854 an ounce with an estimated market cap above $33.7 trillion. Hougan noted that Bitcoin already serves as a store of value in countries facing high inflation—residents of Argentina, Turkey and Venezuela often turn to crypto to protect savings amid currency instability. A Coinbase survey found particularly strong interest in crypto among Argentinians, many viewing it as a route to financial independence and an inflation hedge.
Corporate and merchant adoption also signal growing utility. Companies tracked by BitBo together hold more than 1.5 million Bitcoin, valued at over $116 billion, and research cited by Springer Nature identified roughly 11,000 merchants worldwide accepting Bitcoin. Those trends suggest increasing use as a medium of exchange in addition to store-of-value demand.
Hougan’s takeaway is straightforward: if Bitcoin assumes a dual role—both gold-like and dollar-like—previous price and market-size estimates may be too conservative, and the asset’s addressable market could expand well beyond gold’s current scale.