Bitcoin surges past $100k for first time

BBC - The price of Bitcoin has for the first time broken past the $100,000 mark, hitting a new record high.

The value of the world's biggest cryptocurrency has been boosted by hopes US President-elect Donald Trump will adopt crypto-friendly policies.

The milestone was reached hours after Trump said he would nominate former Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) commissioner Paul Atkins to run the Wall Street regulator.

Mr Atkins is seen as being far more pro-cryptocurrency than the current head of the SEC, Gary Gensler.

The $100,000 milestone prompted celebrations from cryptocurrency fans around the world.

Bitcoin's wildly fluctuating value has always attracted interest, with its backers reacting with delight when it has passed previous price thresholds - and defiance during its slumps.

But this particular landmark has been especially keenly anticipated. For weeks charts, memes and predictions have swirled around social media about when the price would hit the figure thought to be one of the holy grails of the crypto world.

Millions of viewers even tuned in to online watch parties as the price hovered close to $100k.

The value of a single bitcoin is one of the barometers of optimism in the cryptocurrency industry which is now estimated to be worth $3.3tn, according to analysis firm Coin Market Cap.

Trump's election victory last month was the catalyst for the latest surge.

The president-elect has vowed to make the US "the crypto capital of the planet" - a remarkable turnaround given as recently as 2021 he was calling Bitcoin a "scam."

Also remarkable is just how Bitcoin's price has rocketed. A valuation of $100k represents a 40% increase on election day in the U.S. and more than double the price it started the year at.

But there's lots more to Bitcoin than the dizzying changes in its value.

From its enigmatic inventor to the bringing down of the so-called Crypto King, it's a story with many twists and turns, which has seen the making - and losing - of huge fortunes.

So here's the BBC's list of the seven wildest moments - so far - in Bitcoin's tumultuous history.

Despite its enormous profile, no-one actually knows for sure who invented Bitcoin. The idea for it was posted on internet forums in 2008 by someone calling themselves Satoshi Nakamoto.

They explained how a peer-to-peer digital cash system could work to enable people to send virtual coins over the internet, just as easily as sending an email.

Satoshi created a complex computer system that would process transactions and create new coins using a huge network of self-appointed volunteers around the world who used special software and powerful computers.

But he - or they - never revealed their identity, and the world has never worked it out.

Bitcoin now underpins a two trillion-dollar cryptocurrency industry - but the first recorded transaction using it was the purchase of pizza.

On 22 May 2010, Lazlo Hanyecz, offered $41 worth of Bitcoin on a crypto forum in return for two pizzas.

A 19-year-old student obliged and the day went down in history for fans of the currency as #BitcoinPizza day.

A source of memes for those in crypto community, it also showcased the power of Bitcoin - an internet money that could genuinely buy items online.

Criminals must have been watching too, because within a year the first darknet marketplace was launched selling drugs and other illegal goods in exchange for Bitcoin.

The deal looks pretty bad for Lazlo now too. If he had held onto those coins they would now be worth hundreds of millions of dollars!

In September 2021, President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador, central America, made Bitcoin legal tender.

Hairdressers, supermarkets and other shops had to accept Bitcoin by law, alongside its main currency, the US dollar.

Many Bitcoin enthusiasts and reporters visited the area, briefly boosting tourism to the country.

While President Bukele hoped the move would increase investment in his country and cut costs for citizens exchanging money, it did not become as popular as he hoped.

He is still hoping it will take off but for now the US dollar still remains king in the country.