But governments have only accepted and legalized bitcoin in recent years, and institutions have only entered the market since the ETF was approved. Meanwhile, Bitcoin has been around for years and has grown significantly before governments and institutions intervened.
So it can be both . As bitcoin became so popular and stopping it seemed impossible, governments had no choice but to adopt it to make it easier to manage. Meanwhile, bitcoin is unlikely to become popular globally without government approval and institutional push . Especially as bitcoin gets bigger and bigger, and if it wants to grow further, it needs more money to flow into the market , so there is no denying the role of governments and institutions in helping bitcoin reach $100k or when it becomes globally popular in the future.
Exactly that is key truth about Bitcoin journey. It grew significantly and gained popularity on its own through individual users seeking or new financial system, long before governments or big institutions got involved. And when Bitcoin became too big to ignore governments started to regulate it for easier management especially with approval of ETFs started to invest heavily bringing in massive funds and broader reach needed for Bitcoin to truly become globally popular asset and potentially hit new price milestones $100000+. Bitcoin early success came from its independent spirit and its future widespread adoption.