Bitcoin’s Best Week In 3 Years Amid Record Short Liquidations Puts $126K Overshoot Back In Play, Standard Chartered Says

Bitcoin (BTC) rallied past $78,000 on Friday morning, and is on track for its strongest weekly performance in more than three years.

According to Standard Chartered analyst Geoffrey Kendrick, it could shoot past its record high of over $126,000 before the end of the year. “For the first time this year there is now a risk my end year forecast (of $100k) is too low,” Kendrick wrote in an email to clients, adding that “an overshoot towards the all-time high before year-end may be possible” after October 6.

Koyfin data showed Bitcoin was on track for its biggest weekly gain in more than three years.

According to Kendrick, the rally highlights “the other side of digital asset volatility.” Earlier in 2026, investors had grown accustomed to steep declines. The latest rally, he said, is beginning to show how quickly prices can move in the opposite direction.

Bitcoin’s price rose 8.8% in the last 24 hours to cross $78,000 on Friday morning, marking an over three-month high. Over the past seven days, BTC’s price has rallied by over 23%, but remains around 40% below its record high of over $126,000 seen in October last year.

Retail sentiment around the apex cryptocurrency on Stocktwits remained in ‘extremely bullish’ territory over the past day, while chatter rose to ‘extremely high’ from ‘high’ levels.