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Bitcoin (₿) is a cryptocurrency invented in 2008 by an unknown person or group of people using the name Satoshi Nakamoto and started in 2009, when its implementation was released as open-source software. IBTimes US

KEY POINTS

  • $BTC traded above $97,800 at one point early on Thursday amid news Trump is considering a new crypto-focused role
  • $XRP has been on a week-long rally, outperforming Bitcoin and all other tokens on CoinGecko's Top 10
  • Bitcoin is close to joining two big tech giants in the $2 trillion market cap club

Bitcoin has yet again broken its previous all-time highs and is less than $3,000 away from $100,000, marking a significant spike in the digital currency's 24-hour rally amid news that U.S. President-elect Donald Trump is considering the first-of-its-kind crypto-focused position in the White House.

Data from CoinGecko shows that BTC has broken above the $97,000-mark and climbed as high as $97,800 early on Thursday amid a nearly 6% spike in the last 24 hours.

Bitcoin price early Nov 21 2024
Bitcoin is challenging $98,000 and is moving toward a $2 trillion market cap. IBTimes US

$BTC Surges on Report Regarding New White House Role

Bitcoin's spike came after Bloomberg reported that the Donald Trump team is holding talks with crypto leaders to discuss a potential new role in the White House that's focused specifically on crypto policy.

Even before news of a supposed new crypto-centric position came about, the crypto community was already widely optimistic for what the Trump administration can do for the industry that's been targeted by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

However, BTC isn't the only crypto asset that's been affected by the positive atmosphere, as XRP, the native token of the XRP Ledger, is currently the world's 6th largest cryptocurrency.

$XRP Outperforms All Other Coins in Top 10 in Past Week

XRP, which suffered a years-long decline following the SEC's lawsuit against tech firm Ripple, has outperformed all other tokens within CoinGecko's Top 10 in the past week, including leaders Bitcoin and Ethereum (ETH).

Top crypto prices early Nov 21 2024
$XRP is the top weekly player on CoinGecko's Top 10, followed by Cardano ($ADA). IBTimes US

While the altcoin is only up by over 4% in the last day, it has been on a 60.7% spike in the past week compared to BTC's week-long increase above 8%.

Cardano (ADA) has also been on a week-long surge, increasing by nearly 39% and is the second-best performer after XRP in the last seven days.

Bitcoin's Road to $100K

Despite XRP and ADA's weekly performance, BTC remains the king of all cryptocurrencies and has a $1.9 trillion market cap that all other digital assets have a long road to trudge before they can rival the digital currency.

Since Trump's presidential victory earlier this month, Bitcoin has added over $20,000 and is projected to reach $100,000 before the president-elect is inaugurated in January.

Some industry experts even believe a $200,000 price target is possible before the year ends, as long as the new administration continues to embrace the sector and backs it harder than it already has during the campaign season.

As of writing, BTC has slightly retreated to the $97,000 lows but remains in the green and is in the running toward joining big tech giants Amazon and Alphabet in the $2 trillion club.