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The stories that matter on money and politics in the race for the White House
Bitcoin surged to a record high of $75,060 on Tuesday as crypto investors bet that the White House would be won by Donald Trump, who has pledged to make the US “the bitcoin superpower of the world”.
The world’s biggest cryptocurrency surpassed its previous peak of $73,803.25 in March, following a rally of more than 7 per cent on Tuesday as Trump’s odds of winning improved, according to prediction markets. Races in several key swing states remained too close to call on Tuesday night.
Trump has positioned himself as the pro-cryptocurrency candidate, vowing to end the industry’s “persecution” and courting public and financial backing from major Silicon Valley crypto investors including venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz and Gemini co-founders Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss.
“Bitcoin’s election sensitivity is high,” said Manuel Villegas, digital assets analyst at private bank Julius Baer.
Digital asset investors and executives are hoping that Trump, if elected, will deliver on his promise to fire Gary Gensler, the Securities and Exchange Commission chair who has become vilified among crypto enthusiasts. His agency has launched lawsuits against crypto companies including exchanges Coinbase, Kraken and Crypto.com, blockchain software company Consensys and payments provider Ripple Labs.
The election night bump in bitcoin and other cryptocurrency tokens is a sign that the industry “is gaining confidence by the minute . . . that it’s going to face a neutral or even positive regulatory environment”, said Matt Hougan, chief investment officer of Bitwise, a cryptocurrency fund manager.
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Jake Ostrovskis, an over-the-counter trader at crypto market maker Wintermute, said a Republican presidential win was “important as it would increase the chances of crypto-related bills passing in Congress — at least in the eyes of market participants”.
Bitcoin’s gains were also propelled this week by inflows into US exchange traded funds that invest directly in the cryptocurrency. BlackRock’s fund, the market leader, has taken in more than $2.4bn in the past week, bringing its total assets to more than $29bn.
Bitcoin’s rise has boosted the share prices of crypto companies. MicroStrategy, a software company that has invested heavily in the cryptocurrency, has climbed 22 per cent over the past month to an all-time high. Shares of Coinbase and crypto miner Core Scientific have risen 13 per cent and 5 per cent, respectively, over the same period.
Bitcoin traded above $70,000 in early June but then sold off sharply, briefly dipping below $50,000 in August not long after President Joe Biden abandoned his re-election bid and endorsed vice-president Kamala Harris.
But it has staged a strong recovery over the past two months, echoing a rally in the share price of Trump’s social media group Trump Media & Technology, which has often served as a market barometer of the Republican candidate.
In the run-up to the election, Trump had also been promoting a new crypto venture, World Liberty Financial, from which he stands to earn significant fees.
The decentralised finance platform has said it would “leverage the global reach and recognition of the Trump brand” and has raised $14.7mn from selling tokens that do not offer buyers any ownership stake and cannot be traded.
Some industry executives have voiced fears that the project will undermine attempts to rebuild trust in the sector following years of high-profile collapses and frauds.