It was the same in January. Many on this board were dubious that the price would even exceed the old all-time high of $31.91 before the end of the year.
A high of $250 before the end of December sounds reasonable to me, but since this is bitcoin after all, I bet we'll hit $1000 before the end of the year.
I wouldn't be surprised if the rate does decrease from 1275% a bit. But not down to 150%. I'm predicting $270 for NYE. Which is 2000% for the year. (2012 was atypically low; I think 2013 will be atypically high.)
It's especially challenging to make longterm XBT/fiat predictions (as opposed to /XAU or /XAG) because of inflation.
If Bitcoin were to continue at 1275%, around 2016 the effect on the market could begin a tailspin in the real value of USD and other fiat paper; so, one could say that the exchange rate might well reach a
billion dollars per BTC, though the buying power may be in the low millions
in 2013 dollars. I think Bitcoin itself could cause fiat hyperinflation, if its market reaches a tipping point as a major percentage of world economic activity.
