Here's what could bring Bitcoin to its highest level: Tom Lee

"Hodl" your horses: Bitcoin is back.

Digital currency jumped this year, reaching $ 8,000 on Tuesday for the first time in almost 12 months. This decision more than doubled Bitcoin's gains in 2019, like Consensus Week, the annual crypto industry conference, starting on May 13th.

Tom Lee, head of research at Fundstrat Global Advisors and famous bitcoin bull, said the New York-based conference will be instrumental in determining whether the recent Bitcoin rally means it's really out of the woods.

"It's the biggest cryptographic conference," Lee told CNBC's "Futures Now" show. "I think that in fact, this year brings together the cryptography industry, but in a much more qualitative form because there are not so many scams and OICs on the market."

If all goes well, Consensus Week, bringing together industry experts, business leaders like Jack Dorsey from Twitter and Square, as well as government officials like SEC President Jay Clayton, will be the last sign from the end of "winter crypto," said Lee.

Lee said that bitcoin had exceeded its 200-day moving average in April, the evolution of the bitcoin futures market and the long-standing "hodlers" of bitcoin-industry jargon for people who buy and hold the rather than negotiating it – strengthen their positions.

But there is one thing that could overload the Bitcoin rally, Lee said Tuesday.

"I think what makes investors very optimistic is that now that the bitcoin is approaching $ 10,000, I think there's an increasing chance that traditional, unencrypted investors traditional financial investors are starting to be interested in cryptography again, "he said. I said. "And it's very important, obviously, because bringing this new type of interest and demand to encryption could really push bitcoin to its highest level."

Bitcoin prices have not exceeded their peaks of 2017, close to $ 20,000. A return to these levels would represent a movement of about 150% for cryptocurrency.

In April, Lee said that bitcoin was "likely" to reach unprecedented new highs by 2020, all the while the supply shrinks. Trade tensions between the United States and China could also contribute to the recovery as investors increasingly view bitcoin as a "digital gold" that can be used to protect against extreme risk, he said. Tuesday.

Bitcoin prices traded higher on Tuesday after crossing the $ 8,000 level, but they did not hold up. The digital currency is up more than 113% year on year.