Investing.com-- Bitcoin rose to a record high on Thursday, extending a run of recent gains as sentiment towards crypto markets remained upbeat on the prospect of friendlier regulations under Donald Trump.
An influx of speculative trading, after the launch of options on a spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund this week, also boosted prices.
The world’s largest crypto hit a record high of $97,792.6, before trading slightly lower at $96,909.4 by 00:54 ET (05:54 GMT). Bitcoin was now within spitting distance of the coveted $100,000 level.
Bitcoin remained an outperformer among its crypto peers, with most major altcoins moving in a flat-to-low range on Thursday. A rally in crypto prices beyond Bitcoin had largely petered out over the past week.
Bitcoin nears $100k on Trump cheer
Bitcoin’s recent rally was fueled chiefly by optimism over a second Trump presidency, after he won the 2024 elections in early-November.
The crypto was close to the coveted $100,000 level, which analysts said could be hit soon if price momentum persisted. But Bitcoin was also seen pushing further into overbought territory, which could herald a sharp drop, especially if traders lock in recent profits.
Trump- who had campaigned on a pro-crypto platform, is considering creating a new White House role dedicated towards crypto regulation, Bloomberg reported this week. The report comes amid close focus on just what a Trump administration will entail for crypto.
The president-elect had promised to make America the crypto capital of the world.
Bitcoin ETF options also boost prices
Options trading for Blackrock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (NASDAQ:IBIT) ETF launched on Tuesday, drawing more capital into crypto markets.
Options trading generated nearly $1.9 billion in notional exposure, Bloomberg Intelligence ETF analyst James Seyffart said.
Options trading ties further into crypto’s speculative nature, and is expected to further underpin capital inflows to crypto markets.
Coinbase CEO Armstrong sells nearly $300 mln in shares
Elsewhere, Coinbase Global Inc (NASDAQ:COIN) CEO Brian Armstrong sold nearly $300 million in shares this week, regulatory filings showed on Wednesday.
Armstrong’s sales come as Coinbase shares soared to a three-year high on cheer over Trump’s election win. They were also trading up more than 100% so far in 2024.
Crypto price today: altcoins less enthused
Broader crypto prices largely lagged Bitcoin as an altcoin rally petered out.
World no.2 crypto Ether rose 0.1% to $3,111.0. Meme token Dogecoin, which had shot up in popularity after being potentially referenced by Trump, fell 1% to $0.383335, although it remained close to recent three-year peaks.
XRP, SOL, ADA and MATIC rose between 0.6% to 3%, although they were nursing a mostly rangebound performance this week.