Cryptocurrency markets ended 2026 with signs that the worst of the correction may be behind them, even as investors continued to favor the fast-growing AI trade amid ongoing concerns about the pace and financing of AI spending. Utkarsh Ahuja, managing partner and founder of Miami-based Moon Pursuit Capital, said he expects a gradual recovery for digital assets rather than an immediate, explosive rally.
Speaking to Invezz, Ahuja outlined his view that Bitcoin could finish 2026 between $85,000 and $100,000, driven by improving liquidity and stabilizing institutional activity. He also discussed a constructive outlook for 2027, a rotation of capital between crypto and AI, and how investors are adjusting to the economics of AI infrastructure.
Key takeaways
- Price move: Ahuja expects Bitcoin to end 2026 in a $85,000 to $100,000 range and sees a $120,000 to $150,000 window for 2027.
- Catalyst: He pointed to global liquidity and institutional capital flows as primary drivers, with regulation affecting the long-term adoption backdrop.
- Implication: Investors may see crypto recover in phases, while AI continues to draw institutional funding—at least until capital conditions normalize.
- Sector focus: For altcoins, he favored projects tied to real economic activity, token value accrual, and privacy or tokenization themes.
What Moon Pursuit Capital expects for Bitcoin
Ahuja said he believes crypto has moved past the bottom of the corrective cycle, but that the next phase is unlikely to resemble a straight-line advance. Instead, he expects periods of consolidation and pullbacks while the broader trend shifts upward.
His base case for Bitcoin’s year-end level is between $85,000 and $100,000 for 2026, supported by what he described as improving liquidity conditions and more stable institutional flows. He added that Bitcoin’s expanding institutional investor base could provide a stronger foundation for demand over time, even as historical market cycles continue to influence volatility.
Drivers of the 2027 outlook
Looking further out, Ahuja described a constructive trajectory for Bitcoin into 2027, with a potential range of $120,000 to $150,000 as a new bull market develops.
According to Ahuja, the most important variable is global liquidity, followed by institutional capital flows. While he emphasized that regulation remains critical for longer-term adoption—particularly around custody, stablecoins, and institutional participation—he argued that supportive monetary conditions are still necessary to sustain price momentum.
He also highlighted what he views as a growing role for Bitcoin as a strategic allocation within institutional portfolios and among family offices, which he said could become an increasingly meaningful source of demand as acceptance broadens.
Altcoin selection: why he favors utility, revenue and privacy
Ahuja said he expects 2027 to reward altcoins that demonstrate real economic activity, sustainable revenue, and meaningful token value accrual rather than relying primarily on speculative narratives.
He singled out Hyperliquid as compelling due to what he described as its position in decentralized derivatives trading, revenue generation, and a token buyback mechanism. For Solana, he said it remains interesting, but noted the need for a shift away from activity driven by memecoins toward more sustainable use cases such as payments, decentralized finance, and tokenization.
On privacy-oriented blockchains, Ahuja argued that increasing institutional interest could raise the importance of transaction confidentiality, making projects such as Zcash a potential beneficiary of that theme. Still, he cautioned that Zcash’s recent appreciation could warrant selectivity.
Overall, he said his preference is for decentralized financial infrastructure, tokenization, and privacy technologies—particularly where rising adoption translates into tangible value for token holders.
Crypto-AI rotation and the “neocloud” debate
Ahuja said institutions have continued to direct substantial capital toward AI, driven by investment from hyperscalers, enterprises, and governments. He does not believe the rotation away from crypto will be permanent, particularly if liquidity conditions improve and investors regain risk appetite.
Within AI, he said Moon Pursuit Capital’s focus is on infrastructure—specifically semiconductors, power generation, grid infrastructure, networking, and cooling technologies. He argued that AI growth is constrained not only by compute capacity but also by electricity availability, connectivity, and the ability to deploy systems efficiently.
On AI infrastructure financing, Ahuja said investors must distinguish between durable demand and the financing structures used to expand capacity. He pointed to risks when rapidly depreciating GPUs are supported by significant debt, especially if utilization and future pricing are uncertain.
He expects that some level of overinvestment could become more visible in 2027, potentially leading to consolidation as financially stronger operators acquire assets from overleveraged competitors. In his view, that outcome could favor hyperscalers with cheaper access to capital, while also creating opportunities for specialized operators with contracted revenue and disciplined cost structures.
How AI is reshaping institutional investing
According to Ahuja, the AI boom is influencing institutional behavior in venture capital as well. He said investors backing competing AI companies reflects both the size of the opportunity and the uncertainty over which businesses will ultimately dominate foundation-model markets.
He also argued that AI is concentrating venture capital into fewer companies and funding rounds that can approach the scale traditionally associated with public-market financing. A related shift, he said, is the increasing overlap between venture capital, growth equity, infrastructure financing, and strategic corporate investment.
Looking ahead, Ahuja said capital allocation will increasingly emphasize computing economics, proprietary data, customer retention, and sustainable profitability rather than growth alone.
Anthropic IPO: milestone, but valuation questions persist
Ahuja described Anthropic’s potential IPO as an important milestone for AI, giving public-market investors a way to assess a leading foundation-model company through financial performance and capital efficiency. He noted that reported enterprise adoption signals commercial demand, but he said the core questions remain around gross margins, inference costs, capital requirements, and the ability to translate rapid revenue growth into sustainable free cash flow.
He said valuation debates would likely remain active—whether the company should be priced closer to software-style multiples, infrastructure-style valuations, or a blend of both—and cautioned that even strong companies can become poor investments if valuations run ahead of fundamentals.
Moon Pursuit Capital’s crypto fund and what it is targeting
Moon Pursuit Capital has launched a $100 million market-neutral quantitative crypto fund, according to Ahuja. He said the initiative is designed in response to growing institutional demand for liquidity, capital flexibility, and consistent, risk-adjusted returns without relying on directional cryptocurrency exposure.
He added that liquidity has become especially important as institutions keep significant capital tied up in longer-duration private investments. He argued that crypto markets remain fragmented and structurally inefficient, which can create opportunities for systematic strategies to generate alpha through relative-value trading across different market conditions.
According to Ahuja, the firm aims to build an institutional-grade platform that allocates across complementary quantitative strategies with diversification, liquidity, drawdown management, and risk controls designed to support more stable portfolio outcomes.
What to watch next
Ahuja’s outlook for crypto and AI hinges on the direction of liquidity and institutional capital flows. For markets moving into 2027, investors will likely focus on AI infrastructure utilization, evidence of capital efficiency, and any signs of financial stress that could drive consolidation. For crypto specifically, attention may turn to how quickly institutional participation broadens and whether regulatory progress and improving monetary conditions reinforce the recovery trend.
