In a significant development, Bitcoin has crossed the $82,000 threshold on Binance, achieving a notable 17% increase since Donald Trump was declared the winner of the recent US presidential election on Wednesday, November 6. Over the weekend, Bitcoin exhibited an unusual “weekend pump,” rallying by over 6%. Multiple factors contributed to this surge, but the most prominent is undoubtedly Trump’s victory.
The Bitcoin “Trump Pump”
The triumph of Donald Trump has greatly enhanced Bitcoin’s market sentiment, largely due to his campaign promises and favorable legislative initiatives. During his campaign, Trump committed to establishing a national Bitcoin reserve by retaining the 208,000 Bitcoins confiscated through various law enforcement actions over the years. Senator Cynthia Lummis, known as the “Bitcoin Senator” for her strong advocacy, introduced the Bitcoin Act, aiming to acquire 1 million BTC within five years.
According to Bitcoinist, the Bitcoin reserve could materialize swiftly. David Bailey, a key Bitcoin advisor to Trump, mentioned that this could be achieved within the “first 100 days” of Trump’s term. Aligning with this sentiment, Matrixport, a crypto research firm, noted in their latest investor note, “With expectations that Trump will transform US regulatory policies into a more pro-crypto environment, the bullish momentum appears difficult to halt. With his inauguration set for January 20, 2025, the market has several weeks to sustain this rally.”
Optimism Among Influential Figures
Arthur Hayes, founder of BitMEX, reflected this optimism on X: “Some of y’all don’t believe Trump is about to trash the $ and print money. BTC disagrees. Here is Bitcoin leading vs. my new money supply indicator US Bank Credit. The market is speaking, listen up.” Meanwhile, renowned crypto analyst MacroScope (@MacroScope17) elaborated on the implications for institutional investors: “Very important for BTC traders to understand how the game has changed since the election. In the institutional world, investments are built around having a thesis […] It’s hard to overstate how much the thesis has now changed for BTC in terms of the policy/political element.”
Rumors About Bitcoin Nation-State Adoption
The strategic plans to establish a national Bitcoin reserve under Trump carry substantial geopolitical weight, potentially sparking a global race to accumulate Bitcoin reserves. David Bailey remarked, “The Bitcoin Space Race has begun,” observing that “the game theory is playing out faster than anyone could have expected.”
Mike Alfred, founder and Managing Partner of Alpine Fox LP, shared his excitement on X: “I just got a call out of the blue. It was someone important and they said someone huge is buying Bitcoin in size tonight. I almost couldn’t believe it when they said the name. Wild. We are going so much higher.” Bailey commented on November 10, “There is at least one nation state that has been actively acquiring Bitcoin and is now a top 5 holder. Hopefully, we hear from them soon.” His assertion was accompanied by a meme suggesting certainty over speculation: “Top 5 holder of bitcoin across all users.”
Significant Short Squeeze
A notable short squeeze has also contributed to Bitcoin’s price surge. Charles Edwards, founder of Capriole Investments, commented on X: “Circa $1B of shorts squeezed! From the weekend move from $76 to $81K. Open interest at the same level as when BTC traded at $62K. Provided funding continues to settle down, a very healthy up move.” Data from Coinglass corroborates this, revealing that on Sunday, $133.15 million in BTC shorts were liquidated, with an additional $33 million on Saturday. This substantial liquidation of short positions has reduced selling pressure, thereby fueling further upward momentum in Bitcoin’s price.
Resurgence of Retail Interest
The resurgence of retail interest has been another pivotal factor in Bitcoin’s recent rally. Cameron Winklevoss, founder of Gemini, observed on X: “The road to $80k bitcoin was paved with steady ETF demand. Not retail FOMO. Little fanfare. People buy ETFs, they don’t sell them. This is sticky HODL-like capital. Floor keeps rising. Where are we in the cycle? We just won the coin toss, innings haven’t started.”
Google Trends data supports this narrative, indicating a 53% increase in Bitcoin-related searches since the first weekend of October. On November 10, Bitcoin web searches peaked at 95, up from 42 points at the end of October. This surge in search activity suggests heightened retail interest and potential influxes of new investors into the market. At press time, BTC traded at $81,259.
