Bitcoin Soars To New Record Above $109,000 As Traders Cheer For Trump Inauguration, Meme Coins
Jakub Porzycki | Nurphoto | Getty Images
Bitcoin hit a new all-time high overnight after the new premier pair launched a pair of meme coins and as traders await the inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump.
On Monday, the major cryptocurrency was last up nearly 1% at $106,622.54, according to Coin Metrics. Earlier, it rose as high as $109,350.72, after falling below the $100,000 mark on Sunday.
Bitcoin Hits New Record Ahead of Trump’s Inauguration
During the weekend, Trump launched “Official Trump” meme coin, which has grown to a market cap of $10.6 billion and is up more than 659% since Friday night, according to data from CoinGeck and Coinbase. On Monday, it was down about 27% from its all-time high of about $73 per coin, after returning First Lady Melania Trump launched her own “Melania” meme coin on Sunday — nearly halving the value of the Trump coin at one point.
Melania Memewhich began trading on Sunday night, has reached a market capitalization of $1.3 billion and a 14% increase in price since launch. It attracted $7.3 billion in trading volume over the past day, compared to the Trump meme’s $31 billion.
Although meme coins are considered the riskiest corner of the already risky cryptocurrency market, the launch of Trump coins over the weekend further convinced traders that the new administration will be positive for the industry.
“This move underscores President Trump’s embrace of cryptocurrency and belief that Americans should have the freedom to trade in the emerging asset class,” said Joel Kruger, market strategist at LMAX.
“There is a logic here that would suggest that putting a stamp of approval on what could be considered the craziest crypto asset, meme coins, is the best way to send a message about how much support the market should expect from management when it comes to accepting crypto and making America a major player in space.”
Noelle Acheson, economist and author of the “Crypto is Macro Now” newsletter, echoed that sentiment, calling the decline in memes a net positive and “a sign that it’s strong for new ideas [and] new markets.”
Investors will be fixated on Monday Trump’s inaugurationseeking crypto-related executive orders.
Bitcoin’s new record opens the door to a possible rally to $130,000, LMAX’s Kruger added.
