Bitcoin rises to record $123,000

Bitcoin increased above $123,000 for the first time on Monday night, the latest milestone for the world’s largest cryptocurrency.

Bitcoin rose more than 3% to register a record high of $123,153.22 before easing, and was last up 0.5% at $119,750.86.

The cryptocurrency is now up more than 27% on the year.

The United States House of Representatives is set to debate and likely pass a series of crypto-related bills this week.

The bills could provide the digital asset industry with the nation’s regulatory framework it has long sought.

Those demands have resonated with U.S. President Donald Trump, a Republican who has called himself the “crypto president” and urged policymakers to revamp rules in favour of the industry.

“It’s riding a number of tailwinds at the moment,” said IG market analyst Tony Sycamore, citing institutional demand, expectations of further gains and support from Trump as reasons for the bullishness.

“It’s been a very, very, strong move over the past six or seven days and it’s hard to see where it stops now. It looks like it can easily have a look at the $125,000 level,” he added.

Bitcoin rises to $120,000 for first time

Last week, crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun, who was already a major investor in the $TRUMP coin, announced that he was buying another $100 million.

The White House did not immediately respond to Reuters request for comment on Sun’s investment in the president’s meme coin.

The coin, which hit a high of around $75 in the days after its January launch, fell 3.4% on Monday to $9.45.

Ether, the second-largest token, reached a high of $3,081.94, its highest level since February 2, but is still down more than 10% on the year. XRP advanced 2.7% after climbing as much as 6.4% on the day.

The sector’s total market value has swelled to about $3.8 trillion, according to data from CoinMarketCap.

The Star