Bitcoin (BTC) prices are just 1 percent away from $100,000, nearly 15 years after the asset was first launched.
BTC prices rose above $99,200 earlier in the day and are now down to $98,600. The total market value increased by 4.5 percent in the last 24 hours, reaching a record level of $ 3.4 trillion, and was especially supported by BTC’s 2 percent jump.
SoSoValue data shows that spot BTC exchange-traded funds offered in the US recorded net inflows of over $1 billion, with $600 million of that coming through BlackRock’s IBIT. Fidelity’s FBTC recorded inflows of over $300 million, while none of the 11 ETFs saw outflows.
BTC’s strength has been boosted by the crypto-friendly Trump administration, which will take office in January, leading to a rally in all major tokens ahead of the weekend.
Ether (ETH) has gained nearly 9 percent in the last 24 hours, pushing various indices tracking the decentralized finance (DeFi) sector up by at least 8 percent. Major Ethereum-based memecoins such as mog (MOG) and pepe (PEPE) are up as much as 27% due to their tendency to act as beta bets on ETH growth.
Solana’s SOL rose 8% to new highs above $260, driven by exchange-traded fund (ETF) filings in the US and continued use of the blockchain for speculative trading. Cardano’s ADA increased by 12%, making it the second most appreciated cryptocurrency among the majors after XRP.
XRP led the growth among major tokens, surging 25% after SEC chairman Gary Gensler announced he would resign in January.
Traders expect BTC prices to remain strong in the short term.
QCP Capital traders stated in their post yesterday: “We continue to see strong demand for BTC as global central banks further ease monetary policy, BTC prices are likely to continue to be supported as we approach the end of the year. We have observed aggressive demand in March and June options throughout the week.” “This indicates that investors expect a long-term rise next year.”
Deribit’s BTC futures expiring in March, June and September 2025 are trading above $100,000. The $100,000 strike BTC call option currently has open interest of over $2 billion, indicating investors’ expectations for upside movement.
However, as indicated by CoinDesk analysis, a short-term pullback could be registered at the $100,000 level.