Bitcoin soars to all time high as markets sense Trump victory

Bitcoin has hit its highest value ever as early results suggest Republican nominee Donald Trump might be on course to win the 2024 US presidential election.

The virtual currency rose 7% and peaked around €70.022, according to Reuters. This is higher than Bitcoin’s previous peak in March.

The value has since decreased slightly, hovering around €69.089.

Former president Trump is believed by many investors to be a more desirable candidate than Harris for cryptocurrency. It wasn’t always this way though.

In a 2021 Fox News interview, Trump referred to Bitcoin as a “scam”. He said that Bitcoin should be further regulated to prevent interference with American markets, and that “the currency of the world should be the dollar.”

As Trump approached the 2024 election, his rhetoric on cryptocurrency regulation has softened. In August, Trump expressed a desire to make the US the “crypto capital of the planet.”

Democratic nominee Kamala Harris also told Bloomberg she would support policies that ensure the growth of the cryptocurrency industry. However, the Biden administration’s measures to regulate digital assets may have cast doubt on these promises.

Other currencies are also reflecting market reaction to the potential for a Trump win. The value of the Mexican peso has hit a two-year low, trading at 20.5260 pesos per US dollar. This is the currency's weakest value since September 2022.

Earlier this week, Trump vowed to impose tariffs on Mexican exports of 25% over concerns about drugs being smuggled into the US.

The value of the American dollar also climbed 1.24% according to the dollar index, which weighs it against major competitors including the Euro and Canadian dollar.