The billionaire investor and former Facebook executive, Chamath Palihapitiya, is known for his fearless and forward-looking bets in the tech and financial worlds. His latest proclamation about Bitcoin as the "future inflation hedge" is gaining attention across the financial landscape, particularly his shocking price prediction of $240,000 per Bitcoin.

With Bitcoin already showing signs of another rally and institutional adoption ramping up, investors are watching Palihapitiya’s moves closely. Here’s a breakdown of what the Silicon Valley investor said and why he thinks Bitcoin could eclipse stocks, gold, and even cash as the ultimate inflation hedge.

For those unfamiliar, Chamath Palihapitiya made his mark as one of the earliest executives at Facebook and later founded Social Capital, an investment firm focused on advancing the tech and financial industries. Palihapitiya was initially skeptical of crypto during the 2022 bear market, focusing his investments on other areas. But in a recent interview, he said Bitcoin is now the best inflation hedge, dubbing it the “breakout asset” of the next 50 to 100 years.

Palihapitiya’s pivot towards Bitcoin has marked a complete 180-degree turn, as he now believes it’s on track to become the go-to asset for preserving wealth long term.

“The breakout asset was going to be Bitcoin. I think it looks like it’s going to be the resounding inflation hedge asset for the next 50 or 100 years,” Palihapitiya stated.

Historically, gold has been viewed as the safest inflation hedge, while stocks offer higher returns over time. But Bitcoin’s supply limit of 21 million coins and increasing adoption as a “digital gold” offers a new inflation hedge. According to Palihapitiya, while the U.S. dollar continues to devalue due to inflation, Bitcoin’s decentralized, limited-supply structure makes it a resilient store of value.

Chart analysts have noted Bitcoin’s pattern alignment with previous bull runs of assets like the S&P 500 and gold. Both have formed and broken out of a technical pattern known as the “cup and handle,” which has been known to signal major price surges. Bitcoin’s current setup on the same path could hint at a significant bull run to a $240,000 price target.

The Bitcoin-to-Gold chart has also revealed a head-and-shoulders pattern, which analysts recognize as one of the strongest bullish technical indicators. Here’s how this pattern traditionally signals strength: