Bitcoin sets new all-time high above $100K

We’ve hit a milestone moment for bitcoin. 

A single bitcoin is now worth $100,000 as crypto prepares for President-elect Donald Trump to take office next month. After the fresh all-time high, bitcoin is truly in price discovery mode — all-time highs have now been smashed against gold and benchmark stock market indexes.

It certainly has been a huge year for bitcoin, which started in January around $42,000. It’s now more than doubled that figure.

Bitcoin’s price has continued to climb since surpassing $100,000, and as of press time, is trading around $103,000 on Coinbase, according to TradingView data.

The development came hours after the Trump transition formally announced its nominee for SEC chair Gary Gensler’s job: Paul Atkins, a former SEC commissioner and current consultancy CEO whose firm has worked with crypto clients. 

Bitcoin hitting the milestone underscores “BTC as the revolutionary asset its advocates have long championed. You cannot afford to ignore an asset that capitalized itself from $0 to $2 trillion in 15 years,” Galaxy’s Alex Thorn told Blockworks.

Bitcoin has achieved multiple milestones in 2024, from the launch of the bitcoin ETFs to the halving. At this point, it’s hard to keep track of how many all-time highs it carved out this year so far. 

Then there are all of the bullish indicators around bitcoin hoarder MicroStrategy and the bitcoin ETFs.

MicroStrategy boosted its latest debt offering from $1.75 billion to $2.6 billion last month, citing high demand. The raise is its largest to date, and ended up rounding out to $3 billion.

The firm will, of course, be spending the cash on more bitcoin, even if it means buying the top, co-founder and former CEO Michael Saylor has previously said.

Prior to bitcoin reaching $100,000, GSR’s Brian Rudick said that the firm believed bitcoin could continue to push higher after topping six figures. 

“For instance, Trump is likely to appoint pro-Bitcoiners to key agency and cabinet positions, which can push prices higher. SEC Chair Gensler may resign and the SEC may inform recipients of Wells notices that it will no longer pursue enforcement, or reduce charges / settle existing cases,” Rudick explained. Gensler, on Thursday, announced that he’d be leaving the SEC when Trump takes office in January. 

“Further, the impact of having a comprehensive digital assets framework in the US, should it occur, cannot be understated, and would likely ignite a new wave of participation and development, propelling the industry to new heights. And, other countries such as China, wanting to remain competitive in light of the US’s newfound openness, may unban crypto or become more accommodative to the space.”

The $100,000 level values bitcoin at roughly $2 trillion, which — as Rudick pointed out — makes “it the seventh most valuable asset in the world by market cap, just behind the likes of Google and Amazon.”

Whether the six-figure record converts to a fully-fledged altcoin season is the next obvious question for market participants.

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