- Tom Lee, founder of Fundstrat Global Advisors, established a mid-2018 target of $6,000 for the cryptocurrency.
- Lee was the first major Wall Street strategist to come out with research on the cryptocurrency.
- Bitcoin has already risen nearly 330 percent this year.
Bitcoin has had a stellar year and one of Wall Street's top strategists thinks it can rise 40 percent more by next year.
Tom Lee, co-founder of Fundstrat Global Advisors, established a mid-2018 target of $6,000 on the cryptocurrency. Bitcoin traded at $4,284.14 on Friday, according to Coindesk. For the year, bitcoin has surged nearly 330 percent.
In a note to clients, Lee cites the approval of bitcoinoptions trading and the adoption of futures trading in the cryptocurrency as potential tail winds.
This "implies significant rise [in] institutional holdings of Bitcoin in next 6-8 months given recent approvals," he said. "No doubt, this will lead to an increase in overall transaction volumes for bitcoin."
Lee was the first major Wall Street strategist to come out with research on the cryptocurrency. Last month, he said bitcoin could be worth up to $55,000 by 2022, adding that cryptocurrencies are "cannibalizing demand for gold."
Other well-known figures in the finance community have also started to comment on bitcoin. Investing legend Bill Miller reportedly owns bitcoin, and Josh Brown, CEO of Ritholtz Wealth Management and a CNBC contributor, said last month he used Coinbase to buy bitcoin as a learning exercise.
"We see bitcoin as gaining from institutional sponsorship, improving transaction platforms and ultimately, greater public adoption," Lee added.