Bitcoin hits all-time high of $123,000 as Washington declares "crypto week"

[Alfonso Maruccia]

Editor's take: Thanks to Donald Trump's recent conversion to the cryptocurrency gospel, Bitcoin and other virtual tokens are experiencing massive price increases seemingly out of thin air. And Washington's upcoming rules could spread the blockchain gospel even further.

For the first time in its history, Bitcoin surpassed $120,000 on Monday. The virtual currency went as far as $123,153.22, Reuters reports, before experiencing a slight decrease to $122,000.

According to market analyst Tony Sycamore, Bitcoin's price is surging to unprecedented heights for several reasons. Institutional demand is stronger than ever, while Donald Trump is preparing yet another juicy gift for Wall Street and crypto speculators over the next few days. The president's enthusiastic support for virtual currencies is interesting, to say the least, because the US president was "not a fan" of Bitcoin just a few years ago.

Bitcoin price chart and fluctuation over the past 5 years

The Bitcoin market is currently going through some significant changes – and worrisome developments as well. Some unknown Bitcoin "whale" recently moved 80,000 BTC for the first time in 14 years, transferring around $8.6 billion worth of virtual currencies from eight different wallets. Furthermore, Bitcoin mining is now becoming increasingly unprofitable. Only the most resourceful miners can still hope to extract some financial value from the Bitcoin algorithm for the foreseeable future.

Sycamore highlights the strong position Bitcoin is holding right now after rallying for a few days. The currency could easily reach $125,000 soon after surging more than 60 percent since the election of "crypto-president" Donald Trump on November 5, 2024.

Needless to say, Bitcoin's stellar price is promoting a surge in other major cryptocurrencies as well. Reuters reports a five-month record for Ether, the second-biggest token on the market, which went as far as $3,059.60. Other currencies such as XRP and Solana jumped 3 percent.

CoinMarketCap data shows that the entire cryptocurrency market is currently valued at $3.81 trillion, and this could just be the beginning of something much bigger. The Trump administration recently declared the week starting on July 14 "crypto week," and the US Congress is expected to vote on important new rules for the crypto market over the next few days.

The most significant bill related to virtual currencies is the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins Act, which is expected to establish the first regulatory framework for stablecoins. Compared to Bitcoins and other "traditional" cryptocurrencies, stablecoins should be a more interesting asset for speculators and investors because they are supposed to be tied to a reference asset such as fiat money, commodities such as gold, and more.

Permalink to story:

Bitcoin hits all-time high of $123,000 as Washington declares "crypto week"

 

[Theinsanegamer]

Hype and fraud. Bitcoin is still an unregulated security that only has value so long as you can convince some other sucker to buy it at a higher price. The moment the big whales try to sell the whole market tanks.

It’s a greater fool scheme.

 

[Megalomaniac]

This is the boom but the bust is going to be legendary. Might as well get your money input ready for the BUST. The next "crypto winter" is gonna be DEEP.

 

[Megalomaniac]

Hype and fraud. Bitcoin is still an unregulated security that only has value so long as you can convince some other sucker to buy it at a higher price. The moment the big whales try to sell the whole market tanks.

It’s a greater fool scheme.

There's a problem with the bigger fool theory.
With 8 Billion people in the world, there will ALWAYS be a bigger fool.
Bitcoin's future is secured.
So many people stuck in it who can't pull out - many of whom have forgotten or misplaced their access to it. It will never hit $0.

 

[BbN48]

Maybe you guys should try to study and understand Bitcoin before you crap on it?

 

[seeprime]

This is the boom but the bust is going to be legendary. Might as well get your money input ready for the BUST. The next "crypto winter" is gonna be DEEP.

Every time it hits a new high, I look back at when it was fifty cents and I thought it would never go very high because it's not real. Some people pay a lot of money for digital dreams now.

 

[godrilla]

Maybe you guys should try to study and understand Bitcoin before you crap on it?

Can you tell me if this article's claims is legitimate because it's feeding into my half a decade confirmation bias?
https://theweek.com/tech/bitcoin-crypto-quantum-computers-dangers

 

[OortCloud]

If ever there was an individual who epitomises the crooked-get-rich-quick scam money-above-morality world of crypto it's Donald Trump.

 

[tylerb1489]

Hype and fraud this coin is worthless to actually buy anything with.

 

[3volv3d]

Every time it hits a new high, I look back at when it was fifty cents and I thought it would never go very high because it's not real. Some people pay a lot of money for digital dreams now.

Money isn't real. It's as real as crypto. Yes you can physically hold notes but the concept was just so someone knew this guy had earned credit.
You have to believe in the system your investing in.
Many people associate money to backed by such things as gold and apparently rare metal which is bought every pawn shop for not much and sold on for massive profit.
Crypto is bizarre in it's you don't know who paid for x y and z with xyz coin. Yet people are all happy to buy into something that is basically nothing, anonymity.
If one big fish pulls out his wad when he's nervous, the mess it can create... Everyone starts pulling out and those too slow, end up going home, alone, rubbing salt in their wounds.
That said, Trump seems to know his way around the ins and out of unscrupulous activities. He dives in head first, without caution. What a guy.... what a guy....

 

[ScottSoapbox]

Hype and fraud. Bitcoin is still an unregulated security that only has value so long as you can convince some other sucker to buy it at a higher price. The moment the big whales try to sell the whole market tanks.

It’s a greater fool scheme.

ALL money only has value because enough people are convinced of it's value.

You realize the bank doesn't actually have your -not backed by anything but the faith of the American people- paper money in a vault, right?

You realize they've issued 10X the loans for the money they "have", right?

You realize the government creates more fiat "paper" money out of thin air by changing numbers on a computer to loan themselves money that they then go spend, right?

 

[Beerfloat]

ALL money only has value because enough people are convinced of it's value.

You realize the bank doesn't actually have your -not backed by anything but the faith of the American people- paper money in a vault, right?

You realize they've issued 10X the loans for the money they "have", right?

You realize the government creates more fiat "paper" money out of thin air by changing numbers on a computer to loan themselves money that they then go spend, right?

But crypto only has value expressed in that fiat money. It requires another layer of trust.

 

[JohnRambo4]

Question to those who own Bitcoin, have you ever purchased anything with Bitcoin?

 

[Anton Longshot]

Waaaaay back when I had 100 euros worth of BT. I swapped it for goodies a week later.
A short time after I got rid of it it was worth 20 times as much.
OUCH!
But the worst thing is that RIGHT NOW it would be worth MUCH more.

Makes me feel SUPER STUPID...every single time I read an article about BT.
OK it's kind of funny too.

 

[ScottSoapbox]

But crypto only has value expressed in that fiat money. It requires another layer of trust.

Crypto's value could be expressed in anything. Fiat money is just the easiest reference point.

I mean I could express my house's value in North Korean Wons or the number of Harley-Davidsons I could trade for it without it "adding another layer of trust".

 

[ScottSoapbox]

Question to those who own Bitcoin, have you ever purchased anything with Bitcoin?

Yes. And with Ether too.

However, I have never purchased anything with gold, stocks, mutual funds, or real estate.

 

[Beerfloat]

Crypto's value could be expressed in anything. Fiat money is just the easiest reference point.

I mean I could express my house's value in North Korean Wons or the number of Harley-Davidsons I could trade for it without it "adding another layer of trust".

Sure, but you don't. You don't need to explain the value of your fiat money holdings to anyone. It is universally accepted.

On the other hand, the number of people accumulating crypto just for crypto's sake is negligible. People buy it hoping that they can grow their net liquidity more quickly than by staying in cash or investing in some other type of asset. Almost noone would do it if there was not a reasonable chance that they can convert it back into some amount of cash value at some point in the future.

 

[ScottSoapbox]

Sure, but you don't. You don't need to explain the value of your fiat money holdings to anyone. It is universally accepted.

On the other hand, the number of people accumulating crypto just for crypto's sake is negligible. People buy it hoping that they can grow their net liquidity more quickly than by staying in cash or investing in some other type of asset. Almost noone would do it if there was not a reasonable chance that they can convert it back into some amount of cash value at some point in the future.

Yes as I said: "Fiat money is just the easiest reference point." But that doesn't MEAN anything other than that it is an easy reference point. Mexicans use Pesos and Americans use Dollars - that doesn't change anything about levels of trust as you suggested.

AND: The number of people accumulating STOCK just for STOCK's sake is negligible. People buy it hoping that they can grow their net liquidity more quickly than by staying in cash or investing in some other type of asset. SO?

But you are wrong about converting it back into some amount of cash value because you are missing the fact that the CASH part of that statement doesn't matter.

1) People rarely use actual cash anymore. It's just a reference point for the numbers on a venmo or credit card or bank statement.

2) But what about the VALUE part - Oh that changes with cash. Remember how much more 100 dollars could buy even a few years ago? What about 20 years ago? Grandparents talk about go to the movies for a nickle. What happened was the value of cash went down because the government keeps making more of it - much more than the increase of productivity - which devalues how much productivity you can buy for each dollar.

You only exchange anything (goods, services, your time, your effort) for money so that you can trade it for something else. You can't eat money. It won't keep you warm or dry or entertain you. It is simply a standardized good we've decided to use to make exchanging other things easier.

Yes, people speculate on bitcoin. The speculate on stocks, real estate, and EVEN OTHER FIAT CURRENCY. We have currency markets yet no one gets mad about those. Speculation on bitcoin only works because there is a limited amount of bitcoin and a growing demand for it. As soon as people discovering bitcoin slows down, bitcoin speculation will end. Saving bitcoin will not. Because unlike saving "cash" which loses value over time, bitcoin will hold it's value over time so in the future you can buy the same value GPU as in the past - wouldn't that be nice today?

 

[BbN48]

Can you tell me if this article's claims is legitimate because it's feeding into my half a decade confirmation bias?
https://theweek.com/tech/bitcoin-crypto-quantum-computers-dangers

It's basically a FUD (fear, uncertainty, and doubt) piece. Anyone could write one.
If quantum computers start breaking all sorts of encryptions, what happens to bitcoin will not be among the world's chief worries. We'll have much bigger issues, as all banking, stocks and government systems will be vulnerable.

It's possible that it will be necessary to adapt bitcoin's code to the new quantum computing reality at some point. They can most likely do that. And, unless they're caught completely unawares for some reason, they will. A "hard fork" would be done, where anyone who owns x bitcoin on the current implementation would be given the same x bitcoin-qr (quantum resistant, I have no idea what they'd call it) coins on the new tech.

I'm not particularly worried.

 

[BuckarooBonzaii]

Who knows? Maybe the Central banks are shoring up Crypto secretly to increase their assets, pay the right people to keep it under wraps and strategize. Or how about Government using tax payers money to buy crypto, free money and no one will be the wiser.

 

[Beerfloat]

Yes as I said: "Fiat money is just the easiest reference point." But that doesn't MEAN anything other than that it is an easy reference point. Mexicans use Pesos and Americans use Dollars - that doesn't change anything about levels of trust as you suggested.

But it's not merely 'an easy reference point'. It IS the reference point.
Similarly, to you, the value of a peso or any other freely convertible currency is expressed in its US dollar value at a given point in time.

AND: The number of people accumulating STOCK just for STOCK's sake is negligible. People buy it hoping that they can grow their net liquidity more quickly than by staying in cash or investing in some other type of asset. SO?

Indeed! Stocks ALSO require both trust in the viability of the asset itself, as well as the value of the dollar. The comparison is certainly apt, with the caveat that the value of stocks is a function of something tangible, a share in the ownership of a corporation. As an asset class, it is arguably more grounded (and likely less volatile) than the typical cryptocurrency, and it can help that there may be additional benefits like dividend payments and/or voting rights.

But you are wrong about converting it back into some amount of cash value because you are missing the fact that the CASH part of that statement doesn't matter.

Which is why I said 'cash value' instead of just 'cash'. You might very well convert your cryptocurrency into some other asset without passing through cash at all. But that something else's value is generally expressed as a cash value.

1) People rarely use actual cash anymore. It's just a reference point for the numbers on a venmo or credit card or bank statement.

Yeah, for the sake of argument, let's call these the same thing. Buying an asset on a cash market or spot market hasn't meant exchanging physical notes for a long time now.

2) But what about the VALUE part - Oh that changes with cash. Remember how much more 100 dollars could buy even a few years ago? What about 20 years ago? Grandparents talk about go to the movies for a nickle. What happened was the value of cash went down because the government keeps making more of it - much more than the increase of productivity - which devalues how much productivity you can buy for each dollar.

True and also irrelevant. We're talking about the use of the dollar as a means of value exchange, which is unquestioned. Its use as a store of value is another matter, like for other assets.

You only exchange anything (goods, services, your time, your effort) for money so that you can trade it for something else. You can't eat money. It won't keep you warm or dry or entertain you. It is simply a standardized good we've decided to use to make exchanging other things easier.

Yes, people speculate on bitcoin. The speculate on stocks, real estate, and EVEN OTHER FIAT CURRENCY. We have currency markets yet no one gets mad about those. Speculation on bitcoin only works because there

Actually, a lot of people get very mad indeed about the relative value of currencies and any (perception of) manipulation taking place there. And, as is demonstrated ever so often in many discussions on cryptocurrencies, cryptojehovas and libertarian bros can get extremely upset about the injustice of governments assuming the authority to engage in monetary policy at all.

is a limited amount of bitcoin and a growing demand for it. As soon as people discovering bitcoin slows down, bitcoin speculation will end. Saving bitcoin will not. Because unlike saving "cash" which loses value over time, bitcoin will hold it's value over time so in the future you can buy the same value GPU as in the past - wouldn't that be nice today?

Wait, what? You're flat out stating that Bitcoin will hold its value? Who the **** are you?

 

[seeprime]

Money isn't real. It's as real as crypto. Yes you can physically hold notes but the concept was just so someone knew this guy had earned credit.
You have to believe in the system your investing in.
Many people associate money to backed by such things as gold and apparently rare metal which is bought every pawn shop for not much and sold on for massive profit.
Crypto is bizarre in it's you don't know who paid for x y and z with xyz coin. Yet people are all happy to buy into something that is basically nothing, anonymity.
If one big fish pulls out his wad when he's nervous, the mess it can create... Everyone starts pulling out and those too slow, end up going home, alone, rubbing salt in their wounds.
That said, Trump seems to know his way around the ins and out of unscrupulous activities. He dives in head first, without caution. What a guy.... what a guy....

Money isn't real. It's as real as crypto. Yes you can physically hold notes but the concept was just so someone knew this guy had earned credit.
You have to believe in the system your investing in.
Many people associate money to backed by such things as gold and apparently rare metal which is bought every pawn shop for not much and sold on for massive profit.
Crypto is bizarre in it's you don't know who paid for x y and z with xyz coin. Yet people are all happy to buy into something that is basically nothing, anonymity.
If one big fish pulls out his wad when he's nervous, the mess it can create... Everyone starts pulling out and those too slow, end up going home, alone, rubbing salt in their wounds.
That said, Trump seems to know his way around the ins and out of unscrupulous activities. He dives in head first, without caution. What a guy.... what a guy....

US currency is backed by the goods and services of the country, much like GDP.