Bitcoin Crosses $81,000 For The First Time—Boosted By Trump’s Win
The price of Bitcoin breached $81,000 for the first time late on Sunday and hit a record all-time high, continuing its post-election bull run as President-elect Donald Trump has promised to bolster the industry while several pro-crypto candidates won down-ballot races.
Key Facts
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How High Could Bitcoin Prices By The End Of This Year?While estimates have varied slightly, most analysts agreed a Trump win would lead to a boom in cryptocurrency prices. Bernstein analysts led by Gautam Chhugani said Bitcoin can rise to $80,000 to $90,000 over the next two months if the "pro-crypto candidate" Trump won. Last month, Standard Chartered analyst Geoff Kendrick wrote he expects Bitcoin to hit $125,000 by the end of the year in the event of a Trump win.
Key BackgroundTrump has embraced the crypto industry as a counter to the Securities and Exchange Commission's stricter regulatory approach under President Joe Biden, vowing to make the U.S. the "crypto capital of the planet." Trump's pro-crypto stance marks a reverse course from his previous skepticism of the industry, which he called a "scam" and a disaster waiting to happen in 2021. Trump has vowed "to keep 100% of all the bitcoin the U.S. government currently holds or acquires into the future," he told an audience at a bitcoin conference in Nashville in July, and he has repeatedly promised to "fire" SEC Chairman Gary Gensler, who has taken more than 100 regulatory actions against crypto during his tenure, according to CNBC . Trump earned endorsements from crypto leaders, including billionaires Marc Andreessen, Cameron Winklevoss and Tyler Winklevoss, while Vice President-elect, Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, is a longtime bitcoin investor. Trump and his campaign have also personally invested in digital currency—Trump's joint fundraising committee began accepting donations via Coinbase in May, and he debuted his own family cryptocurrency platform , World Liberty Financial, in September.
The crypto industry was the largest corporate donor in the 2024 election cycle, according to a report by the progressive consumer advocacy group, Public Citizen , which found donations from the industry accounted for 44% of all corporate money contributed as of August. The vast majority of the money was funneled through the super PAC Fairshake and two affiliated super PACs, Defend American Jobs, which backs Republicans, and the pro-Democrat Protect Progress. The groups—financed primarily by crypto companies Coinbase and Ripple—spent a combined $135 million supporting industry-friendly candidates in federal races, according to The New York Times. The investment appears to have paid off: as of Sunday, 268 pro-crypto candidates had been elected to the House and 19 in the Senate, according to the non-profit, Stand With Crypto , compared to 122 newly elected House members and 12 senators it deems "anti-crypto."
Further ReadingHere's Where Analysts Expect Bitcoin Prices Will Head Under Harris And Trump (Forbes)
Trump Used To Think Crypto Was A 'Scam' — Now He's Launching His Own Crypto Platform Run By His Sons (Forbes)
