The Bitcoin 2026 conference that took place last week in Las Vegas was another milestone for cryptocurrency. The major event drew the attention of policymakers, regulators, and titans of traditional finance. Amidst a flurry of major policy signals—including hints of a U.S. Strategic Bitcoin Reserve announcement from the White House and a first-ever address by a sitting SEC Chairman—John Koudounis, CEO and President of Calamos Investments, gave his bold vision for the future of digital assets.
Sharing the main stage alongside Eric Trump — the Executive Vice President of The Trump Organization and President Donald Trump’s son — Koudounis reiterated his optimistic forecast for Bitcoin. Building on a projection he first made late last year, Koudounis stated again his strong belief that Bitcoin will reach $1,000,000 by 2030, from its current $78,000.
John Koudounis on Bitcoin, Banks and the Future
In an exclusive interview with Greek Reporter, Koudounis explained why he believes the shift toward Bitcoin is not only an investment strategy, but a necessary evolution away from vulnerable traditional banking systems.
When asked about the fear of a near-future technology breaching the security of digital assets, Koudounis was unequivocal. “Bitcoin and blockchain are the most secure systems out there.”
“I would be worried about your bank account,” he said. “I would be worried about having money at a bank because it’s much less sophisticated, and their IT programs and everything that secures your money at a bank is far more exposed than owning Bitcoin. Anything can happen, but your best and safest thing is to be in Bitcoin with blockchain.”
For Koudounis, the risks of traditional banking are not theoretical, but deeply personal and real. He recalled the dark years of the Greek financial crisis, 11 years ago. “I was vacationing in Greece… end of June 2015 and Greece put in capital controls. What does that mean? You could only take 60 euros out of the bank per day,” Koudounis recalled.
“Think about it. You could have millions in the bank and they’re telling you you can’t touch your own money. That’s incredible. That’s terrible. And Greece is not a third-world country.”
He then went on to contrast this with the SWIFT system, which he described as “antiquated” and “behind the times,” noting that international wire transfers can easily trap money for days over a weekend while banks collect the interest. Bitcoin, he argues, offers a 24-hour alternative where investors “control your own destiny. You own Bitcoin. It’s the true most capitalistic thing possible.”
Institutional adoption of Bitcoin and Sovereign Wealth
Koudounis’s $1 million Bitcoin prediction is heavily rooted in the tidal wave of institutional capital currently entering the space. He noted that, unlike most assets that start institutional and filter down to retail, Bitcoin did the opposite. Now, the biggest players have arrived.
“The institutions, people like Larry Fink who run BlackRock… and other people that are talking to the biggest sovereign wealth funds in the world, it’s not are they buying Bitcoin, it’s how much are they allocating there,” he explained.
During the Bitcoin Las Vegas 2026, White House digital assets advisor Patrick Witt hinted at impending announcements regarding a U.S. government Bitcoin reserve. Koudounis sees this as a logical macroeconomic move.
“If you look at Bitcoin in the last 10, 12 years it’s the best performing asset out there,” he stated. “The central banks that adopt and buy Bitcoin now are going to be able to, if they have deficits like the United States, get out of that or at least put a dent into the deficits because of the returns that they can get.”
Calamos’ strategy for easing Bitcoin volatility for people
Despite his massive price targets, Koudounis acknowledges that Bitcoin’s notorious price swings remain a hurdle for mass adoption. Under his leadership, Calamos Investments, which manages over $45 billion in assets, has aggressively tackled this issue by launching a suite of structured, downside-protected Bitcoin ETFs.
“For mass adoption, you need to dampen the volatility,” Koudounis explained to Greek Reporter. To achieve this, Calamos introduced 100%, 90%, and 80% principal-protected ETFs.
“We created products that give you some of the upside but dampen some of your downsides,” he said, drawing parallels to the convertible bonds that Calamos’s founder, John Calamos, helped pioneer. “It might limit some of their upside but at least it protects some of their downside so they could increase their exposure to Bitcoin in their typical portfolio… You have similar downside risk with our products, but you have tremendously more upside risk because it’s tied to Bitcoin.”
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