By Tom Westbrook
SINGAPORE (Reuters) – The value of the global cryptocurrency market has surpassed the $3 trillion mark as the election of Donald Trump as U.S. president fueled bets that friendlier U.S. regulations could herald a new boom for all corners of the asset class.
According to analytics and data aggregator CoinGecko, the total market value of cryptocurrencies peaked at nearly $3.2 trillion in Asia on November 14.
That puts it above the heady days of 2021, when pandemic-era stimulus boosted speculative investment, and marks a stunning rebound from just a few months ago, when crypto prices and sales were flat and prospects were mundane.
Bitcoin dominates the market and the market cap milestone coincided with the token’s rise to a record $93,480.
“Generally the way this market is shaping up is bitcoin will break out and then the rest of the altcoins will follow,” said Matthew Dibb, chief investment officer at cryptocurrency asset manager Astronaut Capital.
“So there is a gradual rotation of capital… and then we can expect the overall market capitalization to increase.”
Trump’s election, and that of several pro-crypto lawmakers in Congress, has fueled the wave of euphoria by apparently removing some of the uncertainty surrounding US regulations.
Bitcoin has doubled this year and is up 30% to $90,000 since the US election on November 5. Minor cryptocurrency ether has risen about 33% to $3,220 since the vote.
Dogecoin, an alternative and volatile token promoted by billionaire Trump ally Elon Musk, has gained 140%.
Exchange-traded crypto funds have also been heavily bought up, market participants said, possibly an indicator of buying by financial institutions that tend to shy away from directly holding cryptocurrencies.
“Bitcoin enthusiasts are known for their bold predictions, but reaching $100,000 by the end of the year seems feasible,” said Carl Szantyr, founder and managing partner at Blockstone Capital.
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The explosive rally is the latest in the boom-bust roller coaster that saw Bitcoin sit below $20,000 early last year, in the depths of the “crypto winter” that followed the collapse of brokerage FTX and other crypto projects.
It is fair to say that the market value of cryptocurrencies is dwarfed by that of traditional asset classes. At today’s prices, the 209,000 tons of gold mined throughout history is worth almost $19 trillion, according to the World Gold Council.
The market capitalization of the S&P 500 index is $50.6 trillion.
Some parts of the ecosystem also show no signs of recovery, while others indicate some caution. Average selling prices for non-fungible tokens have been around $2,000 since May, according to NonFungible.com, which tracks the Ethereum and Ronin blockchains, and have risen, but only to around $2,700.
