(Kitco News) – Soon after Bitcoin broke through the $100,000 level around 10:30 pm EST on Wednesday night, the self-congratulations and I-told-you-so’s began rolling in. And on Thursday morning, the self-congratulator-in-chief joined the chorus.
JUST IN: ?? PRESIDENT TRUMP SAYS, "CONGRATULATIONS BITCOINERS!!! $100,000!!! YOU'RE WELCOME." pic.twitter.com/UoZWLe795g
— Bitcoin Magazine (@BitcoinMagazine) December 5, 2024
But while King Crypto’s run began in February, there’s no denying that Trump’s electoral victory has added rocket fuel to the crypto rally, and his pro-crypto nominations and suggestion that digital assets be placed under the CFTC rather than the SEC have encouraged hodlers.
David Morrison at Trade Nation was unpacking the drivers of the move, and what it might mean going forward.
"After a significant near-miss two weeks ago, and a painful consolidation since, Bitcoin finally smashed through $100,000 early this morning," he said. "The rally followed news of the appointment by president-elect Trump of crypto-friendly Paul Atkins as head of the SEC. It was an impressive move which saw the crypto giant add close to $6,000 in an hour. Since then, Bitcoin has backed off from its high point, just a touch shy of $104,000, but has managed to hold above $100,000."
"Where to now?" Morrison asked. "Will this represent a bullish breakthrough and a launchpad for further gains? Or could this mark a significant top with a pullback to follow? There appears to be plenty of positive sentiment around Bitcoin, in line with the strength of general risk appetite. But if US stock indices were to experience a significant reversal, that could lead to a sizable ‘risk off’ move across cryptos as well."
In the exactly one month since the presidential election, the total market cap of all crypto assets (of which Bitcoin represents 55%) has skyrocketed from $2.21 trillion to $3.62 trillion, a staggering gain of 63.13%.
Other notable crypto proponents taking victory laps included Michael Saylor, whose MicroStrategy has been buying up all the Bitcoin it can get its hands on, even at these all-time high prices. Saylor appeared surprisingly serious in his celebratory post, sharing a cryptic message for the top crypto.
Keep Your Promises #Bitcoin pic.twitter.com/9PdS0xq5F3
— Michael Saylor⚡️ (@saylor) December 5, 2024
Some, like Coinbase co-founder and CEO Brian Armstrong, did the math on how much money you’d have made as an early adopter.
If you bought $100 of Bitcoin when Coinbase was founded in June 2012, it would now be worth about $1,500,000.
If you kept the $100 USD you'd only be able to purchase about $73 worth of goods today.
Bitcoin is the best performing asset of the last 12 years, and it's still early… pic.twitter.com/dvBgX5K7or— Brian Armstrong (@brian_armstrong) December 5, 2024
Others, like independent investment and macroeconomic analyst and frequent Kitco News guest Lyn Alden, lamented that their location meant they missed the big moment.
Of course bitcoin had to hit $100k in the middle of the night Cairo time so I’d miss it.
Just woke up to a million notifications instead. pic.twitter.com/OsKxdC5n3G— Lyn Alden (@LynAldenContact) December 5, 2024
King Crypto shows little sign of slowing down on Thursday, as it hit a new all-time high above $104,000 just after 3 am EST, and last traded at $102,890.01 for a gain of 4.20% on the daily chart.
