Bitcoin rallies 20% since Friday's low, soars above $95,000 as Trump hints at strategic crypto reserve

Bitcoin

Bitcoin rallied over 20 percent from Friday's low, after US President Donald Trump hinted at the cryptocurrency's inclusion in a new US strategic reserve, along with other cryptocurrencies.

Earlier in January, Trump had signed an executive order for the creation of a cryptocurrency working group. The order tasked the said group with the creation of a national cryptocurrency stockpile, in line with Trump's Presidential campaign promises.

Trump's earlier executive order however didn't mention the names of the cryptocurrencies to be included in the stockpile. In his post on Truth Social on Sunday, Trump named bitcoin, ether, Ripple Labs' XRP, solana and cardano to be part of the reserve. "I also love Bitcoin and Ehtereum," the US President said, while adding that the two cryptos will be at the "heart of the reserve".

"I will make sure the U.S. is the Crypto Capital of the World. We are MAKING AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!" he declared.

This sent Bitcoin price above $95,000 briefly, marking a sharp rise from Friday's low of $78,273.

Other cryptocurrencies named in his post also recorded massive surge. Ether was up 20 percent from Friday's low, while XRP and solana were up around 30 percent from their respective lowest levels seen on Friday. Cardano, meanwhile, surged 60 percent from last week’s lows.

This comes after a brief slowdown in the crypto market as the rally fueled by Donald Trump's victory in the US elections lost momentum.

"Trump just gave the pump that crypto traders have been holding out for. Any faith that was lost last week appears to have been restored," said City Index's senior market analyst Matt Simpson.

"Ironically, a currency that was designed to be isolated from government interference and decentralized, is now reliant on the US government for its fortunes," Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB said. She has reiterated that the $100,000 level for Bitcoin is an "obvious target".

Elon Musk-led EV major Tesla's pre-market share price rallied nearly 3 percent on March 3. This comes as the company holds nearly $1.1 billion in bitcoin, as per the latest filings.

(With inputs from Reuters)