Trump congratulates bitcoiners on $100,000 milestone as industry reacts to new all-time high

As bitcoin soared past the $100,000 level for the first time, the crypto industry weighed in on what’s driving the move and what’s coming next as President-elect Donald Trump offered his congratulations.

“Bitcoin reaching $100,000 marks a pivotal milestone, underscoring its increasing adoption and perceived value,” Bitget Research chief analyst Ryan Lee told The Block. “Analysts are now shifting focus to the next potential resistance levels, eyeing targets of $150,000 and even $200,000. The market’s measured reaction suggests there may still be room for growth.”

Those targets were shared by several other analysts in the crypto market. 

President-elect Trump’s nomination of crypto-friendly blockchain advocate Paul Atkins for Securities and Exchange Commission Chair late Wednesday was the final and decisive nudge for bitcoin to breach $100,000, Bernstein analysts led by Gautam Chhugani wrote in a Thursday note to clients.

“We believe, this appointment and the broader regulatory direction under Trump 2.0, is materially positive for the wider crypto industry and the longer tail of blockchain assets that dealt with ‘regulation by enforcement’ so far,” Chhugani said. “We remain convinced $100,000 is not the final milestone … [and] expect bitcoin to hit a cycle-high of $200,000 in late 2025.”

Pro-crypto Trump congratulated bitcoiners on reaching the milestone in a post on Truth Social, taking some of the credit for bitcoin’s price rise. “CONGRATULATIONS BITCOINERS!!! $100,000!!! YOU’RE WELCOME!!! Together, we will Make America Great Again,” he wrote. 

Analysts at Bitfinex said Bitcoin’s fourth halving event in April, the Federal Reserve avoiding a plausible recession, Trump’s election win and Fed Chair Jerome Powell's comments that bitcoin is similar to gold and not a competitor to the U.S. dollar, were all factors in the price rise. “Our short term target is $112K but we need to keep in mind that a lot of trading will slow over the holiday period. We continue to see long-term holder distribution,” they said.

Standard Chartered analyst Geoffrey Kendrick highlighted the role of institutional flows into bitcoin in a Thursday note, with over $32 billion in total net inflows now generated by the combined U.S. spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds alone. 

Kendrick also noted MicroStrategy’s acquisition of 213,000 BTC in 2024 so far, expecting its purchases to match or exceed those levels, worth tens of billions of dollars, in 2025 as part of its $42 billion capital raise plan to acquire more bitcoin. 

However, his target remains the same as Bernstein's. “Given the potential for further institutional flows in 2025, we remain comfortable with our end-2025 price level of around $200,000. Greater-than-expected uptake by U.S. retirement accounts/pension funds, global SWFs or a potential U.S. strategic reserve fund would make us even more bullish,” Kendrick said.

‘A fundamental transformation of bitcoin's place in the financial system’

“What we're seeing isn't just a rally—it's a fundamental transformation of bitcoin's place in the financial system,” Anchorage Digital CEO and co-founder Nathan McCauley said in an email to The Block. “With more hedge funds, pensions, governments, and other institutions entering the market, the real story isn't bitcoin's price—it's who's doing the buying."

While bitcoin reaching six figures is no small feat, eToro analyst Josh Gilbert noted that the crypto and stocks trading platform is still only seeing half the levels of bitcoin trading it saw in November 2021. “We’ve still got a wave of retail investors to enter back into this market,” he said. “If we see the re-entry of those retail investors, it provides a massive catalyst to push bitcoin even higher.”

Alex Thorn, Head of Firmwide Research at Galaxy agreed. “$100k is a huge milestone, but bitcoin is still just getting started,” he said. “The world deserves and needs a global, decentralized, non-sovereign currency, and the world is finally waking up to the fact that bitcoin is it. Bitcoin is impossible to ignore as an investor, an allocator, or a nation-state. Satoshi Nakamoto is one of the most important people in human history.”

However, bitcoin’s rapid rise, which has seen the foremost cryptocurrency gain 50% in the past month alone, has also led to some short-term warnings. 

“This $100,000 breakthrough was inevitable,” deVere Group CEO Nigel Green, who forecast last month that bitcoin would reach this historic level following Trump’s election victory, said.  “However, with such a dramatic rise in a short period, it’s natural that some investors will lock in profits. This likely sell-off will be a temporary pause before bitcoin builds on its momentum, surging to $120,000 as early as the first quarter of next year.”

“Once we witness the first policies and decisions from the Trump administration in January, there could be some risk of disappointed expectations, especially if the agenda prioritizes tariff and immigration-related policies first," Nansen research analyst Aurelie Barthere said.

‘Bitcoin is the best performing asset of the last 12 years’

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong reflected on bitcoin’s phenomenal growth since the crypto exchange was launched. 

“If you bought $100 of bitcoin when Coinbase was founded in June 2012, it would now be worth about $1,500,000,” he posted on X. “Bitcoin is the best performing asset of the last 12 years, and it's still early days. Every government, especially those looking to create a hedge against inflation, should create a bitcoin strategic reserve.”

Galaxy CEO Mike Novogratz said the milestone represents more than price. “It’s proof of adoption, belief, and a community that has carried this revolution from 0 to 100. With world leaders leaning in and a generational wealth shift underway, this is just the beginning.”

Meanwhile, Tron founder Justin Sun said it felt “surreal” to witness the moment. “Since I entered the industry in 2012, bitcoin has been more than an asset—it’s a symbol of innovation, resilience, and decentralized technology. As bitcoin surpasses $100,000, I’m grateful to be part of this journey with so many visionaries and believers.”

Looking back at a little bit of Bitcoin history, the two pizzas developer Laszlo Hanyecz bought for 10,000 BTC in 2010, around $40 at the time, would now be worth over $1 billion . El Salvador’s bitcoin stack, acquired since 2021, is now worth a record $600 million — over $333 million in profit.

As for the next big milestone? “If bitcoin breaks $100k you can bet it will break a million,” the late John McAfee once said .