For the first time, Bitcoin has soared past US$81,000.

Before Donald Trump sealed his return to the presidency last week, he pledged to make the US “the crypto capital of the planet” and create a “strategic reserve” of bitcoin.

Trump’s election campaign accepted donations in cryptocurrency. He also launched World Liberty Financial, a new venture to trade cryptocurrencies, and made it clear earlier this year that he wanted all bitcoin to be made in the US.

Bitcoin stocks reached an all-time high on the morning of 6 November 2024 when Trump’s victory became obvious. Bitcoin climbed as much as 9% at one point to reach a record $75,389, before falling back to below $74,000.

Less than a week following the election results and Bitcoin is still riding high. The world's biggest and best-known cryptocurrency climbed as much as 6.1% on Sunday (10 November), before extending the gain to an unprecedented $81,497 early in the Asian day on Monday (11 November). That is more than double the year’s low...