Main points
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Bitcoin escapes “extreme fear” for first time in months.
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Fundstrat’s Tom Lee drew criticism on social media after reiterating aggressive price targets for Bitcoin and Ethereum relative to gold and silver.
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Lee’s Ethereum and Bitcoin targets were previously described by analysts as “unlikely to be achieved.”
Gold and silver’s explosive rally starting in 2026, fueled by bullish comments from Fundstrat’s Tom Lee, has sparked a new round of debate over whether Bitcoin (BTC) will follow the same path.
Bitcoin is moving out of “extreme fear” territory for the first time in months, according to sentiment indicators.
Despite renewed optimism, Lee’s comments that gold’s historic gains would eventually translate into a new rally in the digital asset were criticized by disgruntled traders after a series of predictions fell through.
The Crypto Fear & Greed Index, which tracks volatility and social media trends, has been in fear territory since early November.
Although uncertainty remains high, the mood has begun to ease.
In a commentary shared this week, the firm noted that investors are entering the new year with conflicting sentiments, fueled by recent pullbacks and signs of recovery.
“While some mourn personal losses, others celebrate cryptocurrency gains and community resilience,” Santiment said.
However, optimism about a recovery has not been universally shared, especially following comments from Fundstrat co-founder Tom Lee, who once again linked Bitcoin’s prospects to bullish moves in gold and silver.
Lee believes the precious metal’s recent strength supports the bullish case for digital assets.
He highlighted that silver has rallied significantly over the past month, while gold has rallied significantly over the past year, adding that gains in major commodities have historically preceded gains in cryptocurrencies.
Lee wrote: “How can people be skeptical about digital assets in 2026 if these large commodity markets make such moves?”
The comments quickly drew criticism on social media platform X, with some users pointing to Lee’s earlier predictions.
One X user wrote: “For the sake of your career, stick to stocks.”
Another said: “Maybe because you literally said BTC and ETH will actually be higher before today (end of the year) than they are now.
Gold and silver extended their gains into early 2026, with Bloomberg calling their strongest annual performance in more than four decades.
Gold is trading near $4,375 an ounce, while silver is up more than 2%, continuing the momentum built by the precious metal during a stellar year.
However, Daniel Ghali, senior commodities strategist at TD Securities, said that there may be a large reduction in silver positions in the coming weeks.
Galli estimated that about 13% of total open interest in the Comex silver market could be sold in the next two weeks, a move he said could trigger a significant repricing.
Despite the short-term risks, Bloomberg noted that the precious metal remained exceptionally strong in 2025, although volatility increased toward the end of the year as some investors took profits and technical indicators pointed to overbought conditions.
Lee remains one of Bitcoin’s most aggressive bullish advocates.
Bloomberg previously reported that he expected Bitcoin to rise to $150,000 to $200,000 by the end of January, and later said at Binance Blockchain Week that Bitcoin prices could reach $250,000 within months.
In hindsight, Lee’s track record in 2025 is mixed.
While his broader directional optimism was somewhat validated when Bitcoin reached new all-time highs in October, his predictions were consistently overstated in timing and magnitude.
The CCN Education Team reports that Lee predicted in early March that Bitcoin could exceed $150,000 by the end of the year, but this proved to be overly optimistic.
This target was later proposed in September, when Lee said that under favorable conditions, Bitcoin could “easily” reach $200,000, but another prediction failed to materialize.
Technical analysts are also skeptical of Tom Lee’s latest price predictions, arguing that current chart signals contradict the bullish predictions.
CCN analyst Valdrin Tahiri said on December 5 that Lee’s outlook for Ethereum implies an aggressive valuation of Bitcoin, but it is difficult to justify this based on market structure.
“The other part of Tom Lee’s prediction is that Ethereum will hit $62,000,” Tahiri said.
Technical indicators point in the opposite direction, Tahiri said.
“Judging from the bearish divergence on the weekly time frame, this seems extremely unlikely,” he said, referring to the weak momentum visible on the long-term Bitcoin chart.
While Ethereum’s relative strength indicator remains more constructive, Tahiri noted that Bitcoin has lost key support.
“The Ethereum to Bitcoin chart shows the RSI remains above 50, but things have broken down for Bitcoin,” he said.
Tahiri added that Bitcoin’s broader price structure remains fragile, with the market trading within an ascending parallel channel and that there is a risk of failure.
“The only way to prevent a collapse is for Bitcoin price to return to an ascending parallel channel,” he said, adding that “there are no signs that this will be the case.”
As a result, Tahiri said Lee’s high-conviction prediction was unlikely to come true.
“Thus, Tom Lee’s predictions for Ethereum and Bitcoin are unlikely to come true,” he said.
The post Bitcoin price will track gold’s surge as BTC leaves ‘extreme fear’ appeared first on ccn.com, says Tom Lee.