The price of bitcoin could reach up to $40,000 as it becomes more mainstream and easier to trade, billionaire investor Marc Lasry told CNBC on Wednesday.

“As it gets more into the mainstream, and as more markets end up allowing it to trade where it’s freely tradable, to me that’s more of the bet,” Lasry said in a “Squawk Box” interview, adding he sees bitcoin investors making 5 to 10 times their money in 3 to 5 years.

Lasry’s day job is running the distressed debt investment firm that he helped start, Avenue Capital Group, which has about $9.6 billion in assets under management. But he said his bitcoin investments were made with his personal money.

In December, Lasry expressed regret about not buying bitcoin sooner, saying he should’ve bought the cryptocurrency when it was at $300 just a couple of years ago.

Bitcoin was trading up 1.35 percent early Wednesday at more than $7,400, according to CoinDesk.

Bitcoin has struggled to regain footing after nearing $20,000 at the end of last year. The cryptocurrency has lost more than half its value in the first half of this year, according to data from Coinbase. However, the price of bitcoin spiked Tuesday, with pundits saying the price jump had more to do with technical levels than any other catalyst.

Lasry expects bitcoin will have the most benefit for investors out of all the cryptocurrencies, saying “the reason why I like bitcoin is because it’s the one everybody is going to come to.”

In addition to running Avenue Capital as chairman and CEO, Lasry owns a stake in the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks. He spoke to “Squawk Box” from the eighth annual CNBC and Institutional Investor Delivering Alpha conference.

Source: Tech CNBC
Billionaire Marc Lasry sees bitcoin reaching up to ,000 as it becomes more mainstream and easier to trade