As the voting for the US presidential election was underway on Tuesday, world’s largest cryptocurrency Bitcoin climbed 3.3 per cent to about $70,077, with Donald Trump viewed by crypto investors as enacting more favourable policies for cryptocurrencies than Kamala Harris.
Earlier in the session, Bitcoin surged as much as 4.8 per cent to $70,291, or about 5 per cent below the record high of around $73,800 reached in March.
The largest cryptocurrency has gained more than 65 per cent this year.
Among the smaller cryptocurrencies, Doge jumped as much as 18 per cent, bolstered in part by comments by long-time supporter Elon Musk about launching a Department of Government Efficiency, or D.O.G.E., if Donald Trump wins the election. The token, which trades at around 17 cents, has almost doubled in 2024.
Dogecoin is considered by many as the original memecoin.
Altcoins, which refer to cryptocurrencies smaller than Bitcoin, tended to perform better in past up-market cycles, especially with investors rotating to small-cap coins after major Bitcoin rallies. But in the past year, altcoins, in general, have struggled to outperform Bitcoin, with the exception of so-called meme coins, which are coins without any utility.
During presidential campaigning, Republican nominee Trump took a strong pro-crypto stance, when Democratic rival Harris pledged to back a regulatory framework for digital assets. The crypto supporters have largely agreed that a Trump win would be much more beneficial to the crypto industry.
US stocks advanced in a broad rally on Tuesday after data signaled a solid economy, but investors braced for volatile trading this week as voting began in an extremely tight US presidential election.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 382.09 points, or 0.91 per cent, to 42,176.69, the S&P 500 gained 59.65 points, or 1.04 per cent, at 5,772.34 and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 232.84 points, or 1.28 per cent, to 18,412.82.
