Bitcoin hits all-time high of $109,000 ahead of Trump's inauguration
What's the story
Bitcoin (BTC), the world's biggest cryptocurrency by market value, has hit an all-time high today, breaching the $109,000 mark.
The surge comes as Donald Trump gears up for his inauguration as US President.
The digital currency hit $109,114 before settling down to $108,343 at 4:23pm (IST).
Bitcoin's rise is attributed to optimism around Trump's pro-crypto stance and plans to deregulate the cryptocurrency sector.
Election impact
Election win fuels Bitcoin surge
Bitcoin has surged since Trump's election victory in November, breaching the $100,000 mark for the first time in early December.
The rally was further propelled by Trump's nomination of cryptocurrency advocate Paul Atkins to head the US securities regulator.
The move has ignited hopes for deregulation in the sector.
Despite calling cryptocurrencies a "scam" initially, Trump changed his tune during his campaign and became a vocal supporter of digital currencies.
New launch
Trump launches own cryptocurrency, $TRUMP
Over the weekend, Trump launched his own cryptocurrency, $TRUMP. The launch of this new digital currency triggered a buying frenzy that sent its market capitalization into billions.
"The coin reflects two key factors: first, the enduring influence of the US presidency, and second, the growing prominence of crypto tokens in capital markets," said Himanshu Maradiya, Chairman and Founder of CIFDAQ.
The $TRUMP coin crashed around 50% after Melania Trump launched her own meme coin called $MELANIA.
Market trends
Other cryptocurrencies also see significant gains
Other major altcoins also witnessed massive gains today. XRP rose 2.9%, Ethereum climbed 4.2%, while Chainlink led with a 15% surge.
Meanwhile, Cardano rose 2.4%, Hedera (5.3%), Bitget Token (6.4%), and Uniswap (5%).
"There will likely be more volatility leading into President Trump's inauguration later tonight," warned Vikram Subburaj, CEO of Giottus Cryptocurrency Exchange, advising investors against leveraged trading until the euphoria settles this week.
Market dominance
Bitcoin's market cap rises to $2.132T
In the past 24 hours, Bitcoin's market cap reached an insane $2.132 trillion as per CoinMarketCap data.
The volume of all stablecoins now stands at $364.44 billion, accounting for 92.48% of the total crypto market's 24-hour volume, per CoinMarketCap.
BTC volume in the past 24 hours skyrocketed by a whopping 122.4% to $110.54 billion, further underscoring Bitcoin's dominance in the digital currency market.