Why are cryptocurrencies seeing a lift after Trump’s victory?

Bitcoin jumped in value following the news that Donald Trump had won the US election, as investors in the digital currency backed a boom in the so-called ‘Trump trade‘ that followed his victory.

Bitcoin surged to a new record high in the wake of the election, surpassing $75,000. The crypto has since risen to $76,000. 

But while Bitcoin is the one hitting the headlines, it wasn’t the only cryptocurrency to be buoyed by Trump’s sweeping election win.

The rest of the crypto market also benefitted from Trump taking the White House, with 18 of the top 20 cryptocurrencies by market cap rising in the days since the election.

How much has crypto risen since Trump’s election?

Since 5 November, the entire crypto market has risen from just under $2.4trillion, to just under $2.7trillion, an increase of $300billion.

The biggest winning currency during this time was Cardano, rising 31.7 per cent.

Solana rose 28.7 per cent, ChainLink 26.2 per cent, Dogecoin 25.5 per cent and Sui 25 per cent.

Ethereum, which accounts for 13.7 per cent of the market, Avalanche and Lido Staked Ether all gained more than 20 per cent

Bitcoin, which has jumped 12.3 per cent, makes up 60.1 per cent of the market, with the thousands of other currencies accounting for just over 26 per cent.

Why has Trump boosted Bitcoin?

Undoubtedly the more crypto-friendly of the two candidates, Trump was clear on the campaign trail that he wants to harness innovation in cryptocurrencies. 

This could mean more crypto products, such as ETFs, entering mainstream financial markets.

So far, just 11 crypto ETFs are available in the US, having been approved at long last in January. 

‘If crypto is going to define the future, I want it to be mined, minted and made in the USA,’ Trump said on the campaign trail, setting out his intention to push crypto further into the financial establishment.

Glen Goodman, author of The Crypto Trader, told This is Money: ‘Trump is a late but seemingly passionate convert to crypto. In 2019 he said “I am not a fan of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies” and in 2021 “It just seems like a scam”, shortly before launching his own collection of digital crypto trading cards, netting him millions of dollars.’

Kris Marszalek, chief executive of Crypto.com, tweeted after Trump’s victory: ‘Crypto at its very core is about freedom of the individual and the future of crypto has never looked brighter than today.’

The idea that is fuelling the current rise in cryptocurrencies is that, with Trump’s election the slow adoption of crypto technology could be set to change.

Nick Jones, founder and chief executive of digital assets platform Zumo, said: ‘Supporters will now hope for a more innovation-friendly environment. 

‘But this will require implementing a suitable regulatory framework that fosters innovation and allows the sector to grow, whilst discouraging bad actors.’

The UK and the EU have been quicker than the US to integrate crypto into their traditional financial setups, whereas the SEC has taken a hardline approach, focusing on enforcement rather than working with industry players to create a new set of regulations. 

Simon Peters, market analyst at Etoro, said: ‘We are seeing clearer regulatory frameworks for cryptoassets in markets such as the UK and Europe and we believe we’ll see similar in the United States in the near future.

‘We appreciate the importance of regulation to protect consumers and believe that regulation will act as a positive catalyst for the price of the major cryptoassets and the continued growth of the crypto ecosystem.’

JJ Kinahan, chief executive of IG North America and president of trading platform tastytrade, told This is Money that the SEC’s approach is stifling participation in crypto, and limiting the liquidity of the market.

He said: ‘We have a very unique situation here in the US, as it relates to crypto, because there’s not a lot of clear regulation and there’s a lot of uncertainty. 

‘It has held back many major institutions and players from participating in crypto, even though it’s a global asset and retail investors are increasingly interested in buying and trading cryptocurrencies.’

Goodbye Gary Gensler?

One major change to the crypto landscape in the US following Trump’s win could be the removal of Gary Gensler, chair of the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

Speaking at a crypto conference in the summer, Trump said he would oust Gensler from the SEC ‘on day one’ of his presidency.

Jones said: ‘At a conference earlier this year, Trump promised to build a government stockpile of Bitcoin and to also fire SEC chair Gary Gensler. It’s up for debate whether he can actually fire Gensler, but he could certainly demote him and designate a new chair.’

While there is no clear successor to Gensler, it is likely that whoever Trump favours will be keen to back the new president’s policy of innovation. Gensler has proven one of the main hurdles to creating new regulation on crypto assets.

Speaking at New York University School of Law earlier this year, Gensler said: ‘it’s unlikely this stuff is going to be a currency. It’s going to have to show its value through disclosure, through use… The same way you pick amongst the thousands of securities that are listed on the stock exchange.’ 

David Morrison, senior market analyst at Trade Nation, said: ‘It would be no surprise to see SEC chief Gary Gensler heading for the door soon. His perceived negative attitude in applying regulations to companies in the sector is viewed as very unhelpful, and Trump is a big crypto fan.’

Gensler is widely disliked by those in the crypto sphere for his enforcement approach to the currencies, with SEC Commissioner Mark Uyeda even admitting that the SECs recent approach to crypto has been a ‘disaster’ for the whole industry.

With Gensler out of the way, Trump could be able to forge ahead and build a regulatory framework for cryptocurrency.