At noon today, Bitcoin briefly surpassed $97,000 per coin, setting a new historical record.
Starting from November 5, Bitcoin welcomed an unprecedented bull market, surging by 10.29% on November 11, with prices breaking $81,000. Subsequently, the momentum did not wane, and it seemed only a matter of time before it broke the $100,000 mark.
Some 'radical' overseas institutions have set target prices for Bitcoin as high as $125,000. The head of asset research at Standard Chartered Bank publicly stated that Bitcoin could reach $200,000 by the end of 2025.
The entire cryptocurrency circle is filled with the wave of financial freedom.
'Never sell your Bitcoin'
The sudden bull market for Bitcoin is primarily due to Trump, who has just successfully launched his second campaign for the U.S. presidency.
On July 28 of this year, Trump attended the Bitcoin 2024 conference held in Nashville, Tennessee in grand attire and delivered a keynote speech.
'For a long time, our government has been violating a basic rule that every Bitcoin player remembers: never sell your Bitcoin.' Trump praised Bitcoin, saying, 'This afternoon, I will outline my plans to ensure that America becomes the global capital of cryptocurrency and the world's Bitcoin superpower; we will achieve this goal.'
To raise campaign funds and gain support from cryptocurrency industry voters, Trump has made several promises: advocating that all future Bitcoins be made in the U.S., ensuring the government retains 100% of its Bitcoin holdings, and creating frameworks for stablecoins to support Bitcoin, among other measures.
After Trump concluded his speech of 'never sell your Bitcoin,' Bitcoin surged, breaking through $68,000 that day and reaching a high of $69,370.
This statement has also been viewed as the cryptocurrency industry beginning to collaborate with Trump, but it is worth noting that five or six years ago, when Trump was still president, his attitude towards Bitcoin was entirely different.
According to Hongxing News, Trump publicly stated during his presidency that he did not like Bitcoin, believing that such cryptocurrencies were 'air without a value foundation.' Trump also expressed concerns that Bitcoin mining activities could exacerbate rising crime rates, considering cryptocurrencies a scam and 'a huge disaster waiting to happen.'
In the past, Bitcoin was merely a financial investment attribute, a celebration for a minority group. Now, Bitcoin has equated itself with money and gold, even influencing the U.S. elections.
According to statistics from The New York Times, the cryptocurrency industry has invested $130 million through various channels into this U.S. election.
In addition to Trump, another U.S. presidential candidate, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has also publicly promised that if he becomes president, he will mandate the government to purchase 550 Bitcoin daily until the reserves reach 4 million.
Deeply involved in politics, Bitcoin's price is also highly correlated with the results of the U.S. elections.
According to statistics, a week before the presidential election, Bitcoin was maintained around $68,000; on November 6, with Trump's election outcome virtually assured, Bitcoin surged directly to $74,000; it then continuously broke through $75,000, $80,000, $85,000, $90,000, $95,000... and was only a step away from the $100,000 mark.
Currently, the market capitalization of Bitcoin is approximately $3.1 trillion, surpassing silver to become the 8th largest asset globally, only behind gold, Nvidia, Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, Google, and Saudi Aramco.
The carnival of virtual currencies
By 2024, Bitcoin's cumulative price increase has exceeded 100%. Compared to global mainstream alternative investment products like gold and crude oil, it is simply worlds apart.
Even though gold has recently made a strong showing, its increase this year is only 24%, merely one-fourth or one-fifth of that of Bitcoin.
The investment enthusiasm for Bitcoin is unprecedented, which has also indirectly boosted other virtual currencies. Ethereum (ETH) rose to $3,100 per coin; SOL rose to $239 per coin, with a peak increase of over 15%; Dogecoin (DOGE), owned by Musk, saw a peak increase of over 30%.
The impressive rise of virtual currencies has provided space for many top players to showcase their influence, such as Musk.
Since entering the cryptocurrency space in 2019, Musk, although not as experienced as veteran players, is very skilled at using his influence to manipulate the virtual currency market as the world's richest man and a marketing master.
Moreover, during this U.S. election, Musk, serving as the 'First Buddy,' has been closely associated with Trump and deeply involved in the hype surrounding Bitcoin.
One of the virtual currencies is called PNUT, represented by a cartoon hamster, which is based on a pet squirrel that was forcibly euthanized by New York authorities under the pretext of 'rabies'.
This incident caused a huge stir across the U.S., with Trump criticizing the New York Democrats for overreach, while Musk repeatedly posted about the pet squirrel on social media, stating, 'A squirrel and a virtual currency (PNUT) saved America.'
PNUT has been unwittingly dragged into political strife, with a short-term increase of 88.9%, quickly rising to the top ten of major trading platforms within just ten days of its founding.
Similar 'Musk trades' that forcibly inflate prices through personal influence are not limited to Squirrel Coin; Dogecoin is also included.
On November 12, Trump announced that Musk would lead the proposed 'Department of Government Efficiency' (DOGE), and the abbreviation 'DOGE' just happens to be the same as Dogecoin, which subsequently surged by 19%.
Successful in office, Musk and the Dogecoin that rose due to him—if one says this isn't manipulation behind the scenes, I wouldn't believe it.
Is it market sentiment? Or is it stock price manipulation?
Whether it is Squirrel Coin or Dogecoin, their significant increases have no direct correlation with the cryptocurrency market.
This also confirms that they belong to the meme coin category, which is a typical internet celebrity product.
The typical characteristic of the meme coin market is high emotional volatility, where prices are often more easily influenced by celebrity statements or sudden events to achieve the so-called 'consensus value': even if it is worthless, if enough people believe it, it eventually becomes valuable.
Hype and driving public opinion are also areas where Musk excels.
As for whether those who believe his persuasion and buy Squirrel Coin (Dogecoin) will incur losses, that is not within his consideration.
However, the 'regular army' of Bitcoin operates under exactly the same logic. Because Trump, who supports Bitcoin, was successfully elected, Bitcoin has soared.
So, a year or two later, if Trump says 'oppose Bitcoin' again, will Bitcoin be sent back to its original state, falling from the sky to the ground?
There is no real difference between Bitcoin and meme coins; both are products of emotional value speculation.
At the same time, as the price of Bitcoin continues to rise, it has attracted the attention of more and more speculative funds. The influx of these funds further drives up the price, forming a self-reinforcing loop. However, whether this loop can be sustained depends entirely on the continuous inflow of new funds. Once the inflow of funds stops, the entire market will face the risk of collapse.
Therefore, investors who have never been in touch with virtual currencies should be cautious when diving in.
