Bitcoin Surpasses $109,000 Ahead of Potential Early Trump Action on Crypto

WASHINGTON — The price of bitcoin soared to more than $109,000 early Monday, just hours before President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration, as the booming cryptocurrency industry bets he will act after his return at the White House.

One day a skeptic who said a few years ago that bitcoin “ it looks like a scam“Trump embraced digital currencies with the zeal of a convert. He launched a new cryptocurrency business and pledged on the campaign trail to take steps early in his presidency to make the United States the “crypto capital of the world.”

His promises include creating a U.S. crypto stockpile, adopting industry-friendly regulations, and appointing a crypto “czar” for his administration.

“You’re going to be very happy with me,” Trump told crypto enthusiasts at a press conference. Bitcoin conference last summer.

Bitcoin is the most popular cryptocurrency in the world and was created in 2009 as a kind of electronic money not controlled by banks or governments. This and new forms of cryptocurrencies have moved from the financial fringes to the mainstream in wild fits and starts.

The highly volatile nature of cryptocurrencies as well as their use by criminals, scammers and rogue countries have attracted many critics, who claim that digital currencies have limited utility and are often nothing more than Ponzi schemes.

But the crypto has so far defied the naysayers and survived several prolonged price drops during its short lifespan. Wealthy players in the crypto industry, who felt unfairly targeted by the Biden administration, spent a lot to help Trump win last November’s election. The price of Bitcoin has soared since Trump’s victory, surpassing $100,000 for the first time last month before briefly falling to around $90,000. On Friday, it rose about 5%. It jumped more than $9,000 early Monday, according to CoinDesk.

Two years ago, bitcoin was trading at around $20,000.

Trump’s picks for key cabinet and regulatory positions are filled with crypto supporters, including his choice to lead the Treasury and Commerce departments and the head of the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Leading industry players hosted a first-ever “Crypto Ball” on Friday to celebrate the first “president of crypto.” The event was sold out, with tickets costing several thousand dollars.

Here’s a look at detailed actions Trump could take early in his administration:

CRYPTO ADVICE

As a candidate, Trump promised to create a special advisory council to provide advice on creating “clear” and “simple” crypto regulations during the first 100 days of his presidency.

Details about the board and its composition are not yet clear, but after winning the November election, Trump appointed a chief technology officer and a venture capitalist. David Sacks to be the crypto “czar” of the administration. Trump also announced in late December that former North Carolina congressional candidate Bo Hines would be the executive director of the “President’s Council of Advisors on Digital Assets.”

At last year’s Bitcoin conference, Trump told crypto supporters that new regulations “will be written by people who love your industry, not hate it.” Trump’s pick to lead the SEC, Paul Atkins, has been a strong advocate of cryptocurrencies.

Investors and crypto companies have been angered by what they called a hostile Biden administration that went overboard with unfair enforcement actions and accounting policies that stifled innovation in the industry – especially from outgoing SEC Chairman Gary Gensler.

“In terms of general expectations from the Trump administration, I think one of the best things to bet on is a change in tone at the SEC,” said Peter Van Valkenburgh, executive director of the advocacy group Coin Center .

Gensler, who is expected to leave when Trump takes office, said in a statement recent interview with Bloomberg, he is proud of his office’s actions to police the crypto industry, which he says is “full of bad actors.”

STRATEGIC BITCOIN RESERVE

Trump also promised that as president he would ensure that the US government stores bitcoin, much like it already does with gold. At the Bitcoin conference earlier this summer, Trump said the US government would keep, rather than auction off, the billions of dollars in bitcoin it had seized through law enforcement actions.

Crypto proponents have published a draft executive order online that would establish a “strategic Bitcoin reserve” as a “permanent national asset” to be administered by the Treasury Department through its Exchange Stabilization Fund. The draft order directs the Treasury Department to eventually hold at least $21 billion in bitcoin.

Republican Sen. Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming has proposed legislation requiring the U.S. government to store bitcoin, which advocates say would help diversify government holdings and protect against financial risks. Critics say bitcoin’s volatility makes it a poor choice as a reserve asset.

Creating such a stock would also be “a giant step toward normalizing Bitcoin, legitimizing it in the eyes of people who don’t yet view it as legitimate,” said Zack Shapiro, a Bitcoin policy lawyer. Bitcoin Policy Institute.

ROSS ULBRICHT

At the Bitcoin conference earlier this year, Trump received loud cheers when he reiterated his promise to commute the life sentence of Ross Ulbricht, the founder convicted from the drug sales website Silk Road that used crypto for payments.

Ulbricht’s case has energized some crypto advocates and libertarian activists, who believe government investigators overreached in building their case against Silk Road.