Bitcoin has broken through the $100,000 barrier, surging as high as $103,800 on Thursday, a dramatic 50% increase since U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s November election win. The rally has been largely driven by heightened investor confidence, following Trump’s pro-cryptocurrency stance and key appointments within his administration.
The surge began to gain momentum after Trump nominated Paul Atkins, a crypto advocate, to lead the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). This nomination signals a potential shift towards a more favorable regulatory environment for digital currencies. Coupled with Trump’s bold declaration to make the U.S. the “bitcoin superpower of the world,” market enthusiasm has been electrified.
Kris Marszalek, CEO of Crypto.com, hailed Bitcoin’s achievement, stating, “Bitcoin reaching $100k is an incredible milestone for our movement. We never doubted. We never wavered. And we will never stop building.”
In addition to Atkins’ SEC nomination, Trump’s crypto-friendly administration has enlisted figures such as Howard Lutnick for the Commerce Department and Elon Musk to co-lead the newly formed “Department of Government Efficiency,” humorously dubbed “DOGE,” after the popular cryptocurrency Dogecoin. Dogecoin, in turn, has seen a 150% surge since the election.
This latest Bitcoin rally marks a stark contrast to the market’s downturn two years ago, when the collapse of FTX and regulatory crackdowns drove Bitcoin prices as low as $16,000. The current rally has been fueled by institutional investments, with BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF managing $45 billion in assets.
Cameron Winklevoss, co-founder of Gemini, summarized the optimism surrounding the market: “This bitcoin bull run is different. We have a pro-tech president-elect, a red Senate, a red House, and a mandate from the country to build.”
Since November, $4.4 billion has flowed into crypto ETFs, and companies like MicroStrategy are planning to raise $42 billion for further Bitcoin investments. Analysts predict a “golden era” for digital assets under the incoming administration.
Just weeks before this milestone, Bitcoin smashed through the $80,000 mark, reaching an all-time high of $81,858 in early November, driven by optimism surrounding Trump’s pro-crypto policies. Days later, the cryptocurrency reached a new peak above $90,000. As of Thursday morning, Coin Market Cap listed Bitcoin at $102,724.32, with a 7% increase in the last 24 hours.
Notably, Trump’s previous administration had been skeptical about digital currencies, but the president-elect has since pledged to position the U.S. as the global leader in crypto innovation. CNBC reported that Trump has also promised to retain “100% of all the Bitcoin the U.S. government currently holds or acquires in the future,” while vowing to dismiss SEC Chair Gary Gensler, whose tenure included over 100 regulatory actions against crypto firms.
With these developments, the outlook for Bitcoin and other digital assets is brighter than ever, as the industry braces for what could be a transformative era for cryptocurrencies in the U.S.