Matthew Sigel, Head of Digital Assets Research at VanEck, has made a bold prediction that Ethereum's price will reach $22,000 by 2030. This forecast is aligned with a recent market rebound that saw Ethereum's price return to around $3,500. Sigel's prediction is based on Ethereum securing a 70% market share of all layer-1 blockchains, which is currently at 58% based on fees paid by users in the past year.

Sigel emphasized the importance of enhancing Ethereum's scaling roadmap to encourage more usage of its layer-2 solutions. He also noted that VanEck is becoming increasingly bullish on Ethereum and the wider crypto ecosystem, describing Ethereum as a productive asset that allows anyone to open a storefront on its network at lower fees. VanEck has increased its overall penetration rate for open-source databases, expecting 7% of the current topline of financial applications to come from these databases.

The report's significance was underscored by the recent approval of spot Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) by the U.S. SEC. Sigel suggested that there is a larger market for income-producing assets than for innate assets like Bitcoin. As a result, he believes that the Ethereum market could surpass the Bitcoin market within a decade. Sigel's prediction is a testament to the growing confidence in Ethereum's potential for long-term growth.

The forecast is based on a comprehensive analysis of Ethereum's market trends and potential for adoption. Sigel's prediction of a $22,000 base case is a significant increase from VanEck's previous forecast of $11,000 a year earlier. The revised forecast is due to expectations of an acceleration in the current bull market following the U.S. presidential election in November.

Overall, Sigel's prediction highlights the potential for Ethereum to become a leading player in the cryptocurrency market. As the market continues to evolve, it is likely that we will see increased adoption of Ethereum and other cryptocurrencies, leading to significant growth and innovation in the space.