Experts Predict Bitcoin Decline in 2026 Despite Payment Infrastructure Improvements

Bitcoin Will Continue Its Decline in 2026, Although Payment Technology Advances

The crypto market faces significant challenges, with many analyses indicating that the price of Bitcoin will further decrease in 2026. However, according to early Bitcoin investors, this year could bring substantial improvements in the actual use of the cryptocurrency as the payment infrastructure becomes increasingly sophisticated.

It is estimated that the price of Bitcoin could hit a low of around $60,000 by the fourth quarter of 2026, which may present a buying opportunity, asserts Michael Terpin, a devoted Bitcoin investor. He emphasizes that the end of 2026 will be a good time for purchases, as corrections caused by fear will transition into massive buying in 2028 and 2029 following the next rewards halving.

Despite the declines, expert Rich Rines, a blockchain software developer, predicts that Bitcoin's payment infrastructure and use cases will grow significantly in 2026. Bitcoin non-bank companies and Bitcoin-backed stablecoins will facilitate the use of the currency as a means of exchange. Additionally, payment company Square has integrated Bitcoin payments into its point-of-sale systems, allowing merchants to accept BTC and automatically convert 1% of sales into BTC if they choose.

The Lightning Network, a layer-2 scaling solution, reduces friction in processing payments between parties by recording only the net balance of the payment channel in a single final transaction. This network could capture 5% of stablecoin flows by 2028, according to Graham Krizek, the founder of the payment company Voltage.