Today's Edition
Washington (AFP)
US President-elect Donald Trump on Thursday took credit for bitcoin's historic surge past $100,000, telling his social media followers "you're welcome" after the cryptocurrency jumped more than 50 percent since his election victory.
"CONGRATULATIONS BITCOINERS!!! $100,000!!! YOU'RE WELCOME!!! Together, we will Make America Great Again!" Trump, who in September launched his own crypto platform, wrote on Truth Social.
Bitcoin broke $100,000 for the first time Thursday after Trump nominated cryptocurrency backer Paul Atkins to head the US securities regulator, reinforcing optimism the incoming president will deregulate the sector.
The digital unit has enjoyed a blistering rally since the November 5 election of Trump, who pledged to make the United States the "bitcoin and cryptocurrency capital of the world".
Bitcoin hit a record of $103,800.45 in Asian trading hours Thursday before dipping back under $103,000.
Following Trump's remarks, it began climbing again, reaching $103,320.
The volatile asset has soared by around 140 percent since the turn of the year.
However, its advance had stalled in recent weeks, sitting just below $100,000 as traders awaited new catalysts before jumping in to buy.
That came after Trump, who takes office in January, announced on Wednesday that he would nominate Atkins to take over as chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Atkins, an SEC commissioner from 2002 to 2008, founded risk consultancy firm Patomak Global Partners in 2009, whose clients include companies in the banking, trading and cryptocurrency industries.
An announcement from the Trump transition team noted that Atkins had been co-chairman of the Digital Chamber of Commerce, which promotes the use of digital assets, since 2017.
"Paul is a proven leader for common sense regulations," Trump said in a statement that emphasised Atkins' commitment to "robust, innovative" capital markets.
"He also recognises that digital assets and other innovations are crucial to making America greater than ever before," Trump added.
Even so, the SEC this year authorised the trading on the American market of two new financial products, allowing a wider public to buy cryptocurrencies, called ETFs (exchange-traded funds).
"Institutional interest and regulatory shifts are adding legitimacy, turning what once seemed like a fringe asset into a force reshaping finance," said Matt Britzman, a senior analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown.
In September, Trump announced that he, along with his sons and entrepreneurs, would launch a digital currency platform named World Liberty Financial.
Trump has also become close to tycoon Elon Musk, who he said would lead a new US government-efficiency group tasked with cutting federal waste.
Reacting on X to the news of bitcoin hitting the $100,000 mark, Musk wrote: "Wow".
Integration hopes
Among measures expected with Trump at the helm is the creation of a strategic reserve of bitcoins in the United States, consisting mainly of tokens seized by the courts, which could push other countries to grant more legitimacy to the virtual currency.
Bitcoin was conceived in 2008 by a person or group writing under the name Satoshi Nakamoto.
The digital currency is created -- or "mined" -- as a reward when powerful computers solve complex problems to validate transactions made on a meddle-proof register known as the blockchain.
