Bitcoin Nears $100,000 Milestone Amid Trump Win and Market Euphoria, While DeFi Lags Behind

Bitcoin is racing toward $100,000, driven by strong emotions and excitement. As of November 13, 2024, Bitcoin has topped $93,000 following Donald Trump's electoral win. While Bitcoin is soaring, decentralized finance (DeFi) seems to be lagging behind. Ethereum hasn’t yet reached its all-time high.

On Wednesday, Bitcoin hit a record high of $93,477. This makes the $100,000 target feel more achievable than ever. Analysts are even eyeing a potential price of $500,000 for Bitcoin. Matt Hougan, the chief investment officer at Bitwise, believes that current market conditions could allow Bitcoin’s price to increase fivefold. So, $500,000 might just become the new $100,000.

Since Trump won the election on November 5, discussions about making the U.S. a "Bitcoin superpower" have gained momentum. Bitcoin has surged over 107% this year. According to CoinGecko, the total value of the crypto market has jumped 84%, reaching an impressive $3.2 trillion.

However, the DeFi sector is not keeping pace. Ethereum is up 26% in the last week and 41% this year, but it still hasn’t surpassed its all-time high of $4,878 from 2021. In fact, the market value of the top 100 DeFi coins dropped by 3.5% on Wednesday, even as memecoins saw a rise of over 15%, totaling $126 billion.

One standout is DOGE, the memecoin linked to Elon Musk's role in Trump’s administration. It soared 88% in just 24 hours, bringing its market value to $427 million. Investors are in what analyst James Cheek calls the Euphoria Zone.

This crypto bull run is different from the last one in 2020 and 2021. Now, both retail and institutional investors have easier access to the market through Bitcoin and Ethereum exchange-traded funds (ETFs) launched by major firms like BlackRock. With support from Wall Street and the White House, the enthusiasm for Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies is likely to continue.