Bitcoin's market capitalization has now surpassed $2 trillion. Investors in the cryptocurrency expect more good news in the future.
The latest push past the $100,000 mark in Bitcoin’s price came from Donald Trump. In a post, Trump announced the nomination of Paul Atkins for the top position at the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). This has raised expectations that the new administration under Trump will adopt a more lenient approach to policy and regulation for crypto companies and hedge funds.
Atkins is considered a crypto and fintech enthusiast. The current SEC policies under Gary Gensler, known for his skepticism toward crypto, are expected to undergo a reversal. Changes are also anticipated in other areas, such as the disclosure of climate risks and the regulation of stock trading. Gensler has stated that he will step down on January 20, the day of Trump’s inauguration.
«Reasonable Regulation»
«Paul is a proven advocate of reasonable regulation. He believes in the promise of robust, innovative capital markets that meet the needs of investors and provide capital to make our economy the best in the world,» Trump wrote in a post on his social media platform, Truth Social.
Globally, only a handful of publicly traded companies, such as Nvidia, Apple, or Google’s parent company Alphabet, boast a higher market capitalization than the oldest cryptocurrency. At $2 trillion, Bitcoin’s value exceeds the total volume of government bonds from Spain or Brazil and is just shy of the market capitalization of the entire FTSE 100 index of British stocks.
Up 135 percent Since the Beginning of the Year
Bitcoin’s price surged overnight, briefly reaching $103,620 last Thursday. Since the start of the year, Bitcoin has more than doubled and has risen about 50 percent since Trump’s election victory.
Earlier this year, the approval of Bitcoin spot ETFs (exchange-traded funds) provided a significant boost to prices. The entry of Wall Street giants like BlackRock and Fidelity into this market fueled demand. Bitcoin ETFs now account for a volume of approximately $100 billion, or about 5 percent of the total supply.
Boom in Options Trading
The approval of Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs has also enabled trading in put and call options on these securities. The volume of bets on rising or falling prices has now reached significant levels.
In total, there are slightly more than 10,000 different cryptocurrencies. The total market capitalization of all digital currencies is estimated by Coinmarketcap.com at just under $3,7 trillion. Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency behind Bitcoin, has a market capitalization of just over $460 billion.
Government Crypto Reserves?
In addition to the anticipated relaxed regulation of the crypto market, speculation about the creation of government crypto reserves is also driving prices. However, it remains completely unclear what form these reserves might take or what volumes might be involved.
The US gold reserves amount to roughly 8,100 tons, valued at around $670 billion. The total global gold reserves are estimated to be worth approximately $12 trillion.
On Thursday afternoon, Bitcoin’s price stood at $102,559.
