Bitcoin Surges Amid Political Changes and Election Speculations

Bitcoin’s Surge Amid Changing Political Landscape

Bitcoin (BTC) experienced a notable uptick, briefly surpassing the $68,000 mark before settling down at approximately $67,500 during the early hours of Asian trading on Monday. This bullish momentum was largely fueled by a positive outlook surrounding the upcoming U.S. elections, which has ignited enthusiasm among traders.

Other major cryptocurrencies also saw significant gains, driven by Bitcoin’s strength. Ether (ETH) briefly crossed the $3,500 threshold, while Cardano’s ADA and Solana’s SOL each rose by as much as 5%. Notably, dogecoin (DOGE) surged over 8% before retracing some of its gains. The broad-based CoinDesk 20 (CD20), an index that tracks the performance of the largest liquid crypto tokens, excluding stablecoins, reported a 1.25% increase.

The upward trend for Bitcoin began late Sunday when incumbent U.S. President Joe Biden announced via a post on X that he would not be contesting the upcoming elections in November. This announcement had immediate effects on the betting odds for the election, with the chances of Republican candidate Donald Trump decreasing from 71% to 65% by the time Asian markets opened on Monday, according to data from the crypto betting platform Polymarket. Conversely, the odds for sitting Vice President Kamala Harris saw a significant rise from 16% to 30%.

According to a Monday note from Singapore-based crypto research firm Presto, “Biden’s withdrawal has opened the door to a scenario in which, irrespective of who occupies the White House, the U.S. government may adopt a more favorable stance towards the digital asset industry after November.” They further stated, “While it remains uncertain whether Harris or any other candidates will take such an approach, the potential for a more constructive environment now exists.”

Trump’s historically positive views on cryptocurrencies have garnered substantial support from industry stakeholders in recent months. He is scheduled to speak at the Bitcoin 2024 conference later this week in Nashville, a move that has further bolstered sentiment among market observers.

Lucy Hu, a senior analyst at Metalpha, expressed optimism about the market’s trajectory, stating, “We anticipate that the market will rally as Trump’s key economic policies aim for lower interest rates and reduced borrowing costs. This environment would undoubtedly benefit all high-risk assets, including BTC.” She added, “Looking towards the mid to long term, leading up to the 2025 election, we expect Bitcoin to maintain its upward momentum.”