Bitcoin hit a new record high on Sunday as traders bet that Donald Trump’s return to the White House will be good for the cryptocurrency.
The digital currency surpassed $80,000 for the first time in its history just after 12:00 p.m. (1200 GMT).
Since Republican candidate Trump won last Tuesday’s US presidential election, there is growing sentiment that he will ease regulations on digital currencies.
“The potential for bitcoin and crypto to become a very large asset class has increased significantly,” Charles Morris, an analyst at investment firm ByteTree, told AFP.
Bitcoin reached $75,000 on Wednesday, well above its previous all-time peak of $73,797.98, achieved in March.
“We should not expect this bullish trend to be interrupted for a long time – about a year. The next level for me is $100,000,” Stéphane Ifra of French crypto asset management company Coinhouse told AFP.
Trump was seen as a pro-crypto candidate in a battle with Democratic Party candidate Kamala Harris.
Trump referred to cryptocurrencies as a scam during his first presidential term, but he has since radically changed his position, even launching his own platform for the entity.
He has promised to make the United States the “Bitcoin and cryptocurrency capital of the world” and put tech billionaire and right-wing conspiracy theorist Elon Musk in charge of a sweeping audit of government waste.
The previous Trump term saw corporate tax cuts, which brought more liquidity to the markets, encouraging investment in high-growth assets like cryptocurrencies.
Trump announced in September that he would launch a digital currency platform called World Liberty Financial with his sons and entrepreneurs.
But its sales launch earlier this month faltered, with only a small portion of its tokens hitting the market finding buyers.
The cryptocurrency has made headlines since its creation, from its extreme volatility to the collapse of several industry giants, most prominent among them the FTX exchange platform.
Ahead of the election, Trump apparently became the first former president to use Bitcoin in a purchase, as he bought a burger at a New York City restaurant, hailing it as a “historic transaction.”
Bitcoin is listed continuously including Sundays.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
