The oldest and largest cryptocurrency took a history-making step on Wednesday evening. After getting close and moving back a few times, Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) finally crossed the $100,000 worth point for the first period.

How significant is this milestone for Bitcoin and its investors, and where will the leading cryptocurrency leave from here?

Let’s ponder about that for a minute.

What happened?

Bitcoin had been hanging around just below $100,000 for a while. The coin rose above $99,340 on Nov. 22, retreated below $91,300 over the next week, and then bounced between $45,000 and $98,000 for a few days.

Wednesday’s surge started around noon ET. Rising from a 24-hour low of roughly $94,800, the coin reached a $98,000 plateau four hours later. Near 9:30 p.m. ET, one of my economy-tracking apps buzzed in my pocket, saying that Bitcoin was nearing the $99,000 level. Less than 10 minutes after that, I watched a live Bitcoin worth tracker skip from a bunch of 9s to just above the legendary $100,000 mark.

The surge didn’t stop there, and Bitcoin rose above $102,000 while I wrote the paragraphs above. period flies when you’re having fun in the crypto space.

As for the reasons behind this sudden spike, Bitcoin investors lionized the incoming Trump administration’s nominee to navigator the U.S. financial instruments and trade percentage (SEC). Current SEC Chairman Gary Gensler hasn’t provided much back to the crypto industry, but he recently preannounced his January resignation. On Wednesday evening, President-elect Trump said he wants the crypto-amiable Paul Atkins to receive Gensler’s seat. Bitcoin didn’t immediately soar when the Atkins pick was published, giving investors a few hours to mull over the implications of the Atkins pick.

How Atkins and the SEC fit into the Bitcoin puzzle

The SEC chair doesn’t hold absolute power over how Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies will be regulated. But this officer can steer the SEC in a sure path, and Atkins certainly looks like a more crypto-amiable regulator than Gensler.

Atkins has said that the SEC should “update its regulations concerning safekeeping of digital assets,” using stronger tools than mere guidelines in staff bookkeeping bulletins. He is also a well-known proponent of free economy forces, often suggesting that the government should play a very limited role in how people and companies manage their assets — including cryptocurrencies.

So the bullish economy reaction to this nomination makes a lot of sense. It remains to be seen whether Atkins is confirmed to this post and how his SEC leadership works out in the real globe, but his presence seems to have some upside for crypto investors.

More Bitcoin catalysts

Zooming out from Wednesday’s large point of reference, Bitcoin has several potentially worth-boosting catalysts in play correct now:

• The fourth halving of Bitcoin mining rewards took place last April, fundamentally changing the economics of Bitcoin production. history doesn\’t repeat itself, but the first three halvings led to substantial worth increases over the next year to year and a half. This result isn\’t random, since it springs from a changing calculus of fixed production costs resulting in fewer recent Bitcoins. There\’s no rationale why the fourth halving pattern should be materially different from its predecessors.
• The SEC approved 11 spot Bitcoin trade-traded funds (ETFs) in January. The shift was made after years of ETF applications and lobbying — a procedure that probably would have moved faster under a more crypto-amiable SEC board. These funds provide investors a recent way to way cryptocurrencies by means of a stake-like instrument in a standard stake brokerage account. So far, these funds manage more than $104 billion of actual Bitcoin holdings. recent funds have been flowing into the leading iShares Bitcoin ETF over the last month, and the Atkins nomination could spark another wave of investor dollars moving into the crypto space this way. From retirement fund accounts to massive institutional investors, whole recent investor classes suddenly have the alternative to make pretty direct Bitcoin investments with spot Bitcoin ETFs.
• There\’s more and more crypto chatter in the media. The rising scrutiny and attention should only develop more intense as the other worth-aiding catalysts play out in 2025 and beyond. Crypto is going mainstream, and digital coins might soon reach a critical mass where it makes sense to use them for everyday tasks. I haven\’t paid for milk and eggs in Bitcoin yet, and maybe I never will — this money was designed for long-term worth storage rather than quick in-store transactions, after all. But other cryptocurrencies and decentralized finance apps could become the next bog-standard settlement structure, with positive implications for the entire crypto sector. energetic use is how cryptocurrencies — or any other property — really builds worth in the long run.

Long narrative short, Bitcoin has plenty of fuel for a potential bull run in 2025. The incoming SEC chief may add weight to the upward momentum but he isn’t the whole narrative. Likewise, this week’s passing of the $100,000 waypost is a distinctive instant in Bitcoin’s history, but it’s also just another step in a long trip.

How to way Bitcoin in 2025

For these reasons, I ponder it’s a excellent concept to have some exposure to Bitcoin and other leading cryptocurrencies correct now. You can commence a crypto brokerage account and grab the real thing, or receive the alternate route through ETF shares.

Either way, crypto assets look ready to play a supporting part in any properly diversified holdings. If you don’t have any yet, this could be be a excellent period to get started.

Anders Bylund has positions in Bitcoin. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Bitcoin. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

The Motley Fool is a USA TODAY content associate offering financial information, analysis and commentary designed to assist people receive control of their financial lives. Its content is produced independently of USA TODAY.

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