The price of bitcoin soared to a record high of more than $75,000 as Donald Trump moved ahead in the race for the White House. ‘Trump trades’ – markets traders’ jargon for predicting an upturn for assets such as bitcoin under another Trump administration – drove up prices, according to Yeap Jun Rong, market analyst at the local brokerage IG. ‘There’s also solid forward-looking fundamentals such as the possibility of further tax cuts, the potential for higher tariffs, and higher inflation expectations,’ said Kyle Rodda of Capital.com.
In the aftermath of a modest dip, bitcoin remained up roughly 8 per cent on the day, trading at around $74,700 as of early Wednesday morning – a dramatic gain for the digital currency, signalling sky-high levels of economic anxiety that could soon be rippling across conventional financial markets worldwide. Namely, higher debt levels and higher levels of inflation that could be impediments to the Federal Reserve being able to cut rates into negative territory – the same kind of factors that make cryptocurrencies an attractive hedge against such dangers. And with the crypto industry in a spot of hot water under the Biden administration, investors are hopeful that, should Trump (and potentially his vice-presidential running mate Kamala Harris, who has proven to be more open to digital assets) prevail in the election this month, a more congenial environment for digital assets will soon follow.
Perhaps most telling is the commentary from analysts such as Gautam Chhugani at Bernstein, who speculated that bitcoin would skyrocket to $90,000 by December if Trump wins the election. This speculation shows just how much the electoral prospects can sway cryptocurrency markets. These expectations suggest that a bet on cryptocurrencies now could be a bet on a Trump victory in the elections.
Source: Markets Insider
