Bitcoin Breaks $100,000 After Trump’s SEC Selection, Fed’s Comments

The road to $100,000 was finally achieved for Bitcoin as the flagship cryptocurrency’s total market capitalization firmed above $2 trillion.
After breaking through the six-figure threshold Thursday, Bitcoin (BTC) prices climbed to as high as $105,325 before paring some of its gains.
Bitcoin has surged 140 percent this year and about 45 percent since the election.
By comparison, the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average has risen 19 percent year to date, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index has climbed about 32 percent.
Bitcoin gained further momentum on comments made by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.
According to the U.S. central bank chief, Bitcoin is a speculative asset not being used as a store of value or a form of payment. “It’s not a competitor for the dollar. It’s really a competitor for gold,” Powell told CNBC host Andrew Ross Sorkin.
Trump congratulated the Bitcoin community after achieving this long-awaited mark.
Investors are optimistic that the incoming administration will maintain a friendlier relationship with the crypto industry and deliver on his campaign pledges.
Throughout the campaign, Trump promised to establish a national Bitcoin reserve, create a presidential crypto advisory council, and eliminate taxes on crypto transactions. The president-elect also vowed to terminate the term for SEC chair Gary Gensler, who has opposed the crypto industry, but who recently announced plans to step down on Jan. 20, 2025.
Trump has filled his incoming administration with several other crypto supporters, including billionaire financier Scott Bessent for the Department of the Treasury and seasoned Wall Street investor Howard Lutnick for the Department of Commerce.
“Unregulated crypto assets can facilitate unlawful behavior, including drug trade and other illegal activity,” Trump said. “We have only one real currency in the USA, and it will always stay that way. It is called the United States dollar!”
“For those of us who have been here a long time, it’s emotional,” Acheson said. “It feels like a graduation, a step into the adult world, with head held high.”
It was a crucial milestone for the Bitcoin community following years of booms and busts, regulatory pressures, and a perfunctory attitude from the finance sector.
Since Bitcoin’s inception in 2009, after the global financial crisis of 2008–09, critics have been largely opposed to its decentralized aspect, which allows transactions without a financial institution. As it became popular, regulators worldwide warned that Bitcoin and its sister tokens were used for illicit activities and tax evasion.
The tone has shifted as demand from Wall Street institutions has grown in recent years. At the beginning of 2024, BlackRock and Fidelity launched the first spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
A chorus of market watchers has delivered rosy projections for the years ahead.
One crypto expert offered a more conservative forecast for Bitcoin.
According to market analyst Willy Woo, prices for Bitcoin could consolidate to the $88,00–91,000 range before returning above $100,000.
Another four years of Trump could present both opportunities and risks for crypto investors, says Joe Tigay, a portfolio manager at Rational Equity Armor Fund.
“Cryptocurrencies could face significant hurdles, from regulatory uncertainty to geopolitical tensions,” Tigay said in a note emailed to The Epoch Times.
“Investors must stay vigilant. Success will depend on adapting to new policies, embracing innovation, and navigating government shifts.”
Now that the milestone has been reached, Acheson prepared Bitcoiners for the future.
“Going forward, BTC will rise, and it will fall, and it will continue to do so as long as ‘forever’ has meaning. Because no one entity can decide otherwise,” Acheson wrote.
“But today is a landmark we will never forget. Today feels like the beginning of something new.”