Weekly Recap: President-elect Trump’s Crypto-Friendly Nominations and Bitcoin’s Historic Rally
As we enter the final stretch of the year, the cryptocurrency market continues to witness unprecedented growth, largely driven by the incoming administration’s pro-crypto stance. President-elect Donald Trump’s nominations for key positions, including Commerce Secretary and Treasury Secretary, have sent a positive signal to the crypto community, while a GOP Senator’s proposal to sell gold reserves for Bitcoin has sparked a heated debate.
SEC Shakeup and Crypto-Friendly Nominations
The SEC is set to undergo a significant shakeup, with Chair Gary Gensler announcing his resignation on January 20, 2025, coinciding with Trump’s inauguration day. The incoming administration is considering Teresa Goody Guillén, a securities attorney and former SEC attorney, to replace Gensler. This move has sparked optimism among crypto advocates, who see it as a positive step towards a more crypto-friendly regulatory environment.
Trump’s nominations for key positions have also been a subject of interest. Howard Lutnick, the incoming Commerce Secretary, is a vocal crypto advocate, while Scott Bessent, the nominated Treasury Secretary, has been associated with the crypto space. These nominations bode well for the crypto community, which has been hopeful about the incoming administration’s stance on crypto regulation.
US Bitcoin Reserve Discussions
GOP Senator Cynthia Lummis has proposed selling off the government’s gold reserve to implement a Bitcoin reserve, sparking a heated debate in the crypto community. While BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, declined to support the initiative, VanEck publicly endorsed the plan. This proposal has garnered significant attention, with some seeing it as a positive step towards widespread adoption of Bitcoin.
Bitcoin Flirts with $100,000
Bitcoin continues to make headlines, flirting with the $100,000 mark. After breaching $93,000 two weeks ago, Bitcoin hit new all-time highs last week, driven by strong ETF inflows and a slowdown in spot ETF outflows. On Thursday, November 21, BTC claimed $95,000 as bulls strengthened their hold, and on Friday, it breached $97,000, sparking predictions of a run to $100,000.
Institutional BTC Interest
Institutional interest in Bitcoin continues to grow, with major players like MicroStrategy, Semler Scientific, and Metaplanet augmenting their Bitcoin holdings. MicroStrategy announced the purchase of 51,780 BTC worth $4.6 billion, bringing its total holdings to 331,200 BTC. This move has sent a positive signal to the market, with some predicting a further increase in institutional investment.
XRP and Cardano Cross $1
XRP and Cardano, two assets that had languished below the $1 mark for at least two years, eventually reclaimed the elusive price mark. XRP rose 41% to reach a three-year peak of $1.265 on November 16, while Cardano rallied 27% to reach a peak of $1.0440, breaking past the $1 mark for the first time since April 2022.
SUI Suffers First Downtime
Layer-1 blockchain protocol Sui suffered its first downtime, with the network stopping production for over two hours due to a bug in transaction scheduling logic. However, the issue was quickly resolved, and the Sui network is back up and processing transactions again.
Key Takeaways
- President-elect Trump’s nominations for key positions have sent a positive signal to the crypto community.
- The SEC is set to undergo a significant shakeup, with Chair Gary Gensler announcing his resignation.
- Bitcoin continues to make headlines, flirting with the $100,000 mark.
- Institutional interest in Bitcoin continues to grow, with major players augmenting their Bitcoin holdings.
- XRP and Cardano have reclaimed the $1 mark, sparking a positive rally in the market.
Predictions
Based on the analysis, we can make the following predictions:
- Bitcoin will continue to make headlines, with a strong likelihood of breaching the $100,000 mark in the coming weeks.
- Institutional interest in Bitcoin will continue to grow, with major players increasing their Bitcoin holdings.
- XRP and Cardano will continue to rally, with a strong likelihood of breaking past the $2 mark in the coming weeks.
- The Sui network will continue to recover from its first downtime, with a strong likelihood of resolving any future issues quickly.
Overall, the cryptocurrency market continues to witness unprecedented growth, driven by the incoming administration’s pro-crypto stance and institutional interest in Bitcoin. As we enter the final stretch of the year, it will be interesting to see how the market responds to these developments.
