Bitcoin breaks through the 100,000 USD barrier, the Crypto Assets industry enters a new era.

On December 5, 2024, around 10:30 AM, the price of Bitcoin officially surpassed the $100,000 mark for the first time, entering the six-figure era. This historic moment marks that in the 15 years since Bitcoin's inception, its market value has exceeded $2 trillion, standing alongside tech giants like Google, far surpassing traditional precious metals like silver.

Bitcoin and the entire Crypto Assets market have gradually grown from the infant stage to a vibrant teenager, ready to embrace the development of the next 15 years in a new posture. From the initial $0.0008 rising to $100,000, Bitcoin's increase over the past 15 years has exceeded 125 million times, which is remarkable.

At the same time, with the appointment of the new SEC chairman, it is expected to bring new development opportunities and innovative ideas to the industry, and the future development prospects of Bitcoin and Crypto Assets are broad.

A Review of Bitcoin's 15-Year Journey

Let's turn back the clock 15 years. In November 2008, a paper titled "Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System" authored by Satoshi Nakamoto was published online, systematically outlining how to establish an electronic transaction system that does not rely on third-party trust through a peer-to-peer network, bringing disruptive ideas to the global financial sector.

At that time, the world was experiencing an unprecedented financial crisis. This crisis, which began in the United States and was marked by the collapse of Lehman Brothers, triggered a chain reaction that not only shook the U.S. financial system but also affected the global economy. To save the economy on the brink of collapse, the U.S. government took unprecedented intervention measures, including injecting massive public funds into financial institutions and implementing quantitative easing policies. Although these measures stabilized the market in the short term, they also sowed the seeds of hidden dangers: excessive money supply, increased inflation risks, intensified financial market volatility, and even led to a loss of public confidence in the traditional financial system.

It is against this backdrop that Satoshi Nakamoto conceived the idea of designing a brand new currency system. He hoped to build a decentralized payment system through technological means, no longer relying on governments and financial institutions. In the traditional financial system, the right to issue currency is monopolized by central banks, and transactions are recorded and processed by financial institutions such as commercial banks. Although this model has been in operation for many years, it inevitably exposes the problems brought about by centralization, such as excessive reliance on monetary policy, corruption in financial institutions, and the lack of transaction privacy.

The core idea of Bitcoin is to break this traditional model. Satoshi Nakamoto proposed the concept of blockchain technology, which is a distributed ledger technology that verifies and records transactions through a consensus mechanism among nodes in the entire network. With the help of blockchain, Bitcoin achieves decentralized transactions, allowing users to make payments directly through a peer-to-peer network without relying on any intermediary. This not only improves transaction efficiency but also reduces costs, providing greater protection for transaction privacy.

Only two months after the paper was published, on January 3, 2009, Satoshi Nakamoto mined the genesis block of Bitcoin on a small server located in Helsinki, Finland. As a reward, he received the first 50 Bitcoins. The timestamp of the genesis block also notably contains a symbolic text: "The Times 03/Jan/2009 Chancellor on brink of second bailout for banks." This text not only records the historical context of the birth of Bitcoin but also highlights its symbolic significance as a reflection on the traditional financial system.

From the moment the genesis block was born, Bitcoin officially took its historic first step. Although initially only a handful of tech geeks and cryptography enthusiasts participated, the potential of this emerging phenomenon gradually became recognized by more people. Bitcoin is not just a digital currency; it is also a technological revolution. With decentralization and transparency at its core, it has opened up new possibilities for payment methods, value storage, and financial innovation.

As time goes by, Bitcoin and the blockchain technology behind it have continued to develop, attracting the attention of countless developers, investors, and businesses. Today, Bitcoin has become a global asset, playing an important role not only in the financial sector but also sparking profound discussions about technological ethics and economic systems.

Analysis of the Reasons for Bitcoin Breaking $100,000

On January 11, 2024, at 4 AM, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission approved 11 spot Bitcoin ETFs, including BlackRock. This move has caused a huge response in global financial markets. As of November 21, 2024, in just 10 months, Bitcoin ETFs have attracted over $100 billion in inflows, approaching 82% of the size of U.S. gold ETFs. This change means that Bitcoin is no longer just a high-risk speculative product dominated by retail investors, but is gradually becoming an important asset for global institutional investors.

With the influx of these funds, the market structure of Bitcoin has undergone a fundamental transformation. Wall Street financial giants, globally listed companies, and even sovereign wealth funds from multiple countries are participating in this battle to seize Bitcoin. The rise of institutional investment has made Bitcoin not just a "private domain" for crypto assets enthusiasts, but also an asset class in the traditional financial system that cannot be ignored.

Taking a listed company as an example, this company, which was once primarily focused on enterprise software, has successfully transformed into the world's largest holder of Bitcoin. As of December 5, 2024, the company holds more than 402,100 Bitcoins, accounting for 1.5% of the global Bitcoin supply. To achieve this goal, the company has spent a total of $23.483 billion to acquire Bitcoins, with an average purchase price of $58,402. Now, the company's paper profit has exceeded $16.7 billion, making it one of the most influential Bitcoin "whales" in the world. Meanwhile, over 60 listed companies and thousands of private companies are quietly following suit, joining the ranks of Bitcoin hoarders.

Behind this trend, the shift in U.S. policy has played a crucial role. After the new government took office, it quickly cleared a series of institutional barriers to the development of Crypto Assets, adopting a more lenient regulatory policy for Crypto Assets and supporting plans to include Bitcoin as a strategic asset in government reserves. This policy loosening has injected strong confidence into the market, driving more capital into the Bitcoin market and laying a solid foundation for the financialization and legalization of Bitcoin.

The globalization process of Bitcoin is actually a complex script woven from multiple factors. First, against the backdrop of the Federal Reserve's interest rate cut cycle in the United States, the liquidity of global capital markets has greatly increased, making Bitcoin, as a non-traditional asset, increasingly attractive. The entry of several Wall Street giants has injected a large amount of institutional funds into the Bitcoin market and provided it with higher market recognition. Meanwhile, some company CEOs have become fervent supporters of Bitcoin, and by leveraging to increase their Bitcoin holdings, they have not only propelled the price of Bitcoin upward but also driven their company's stock prices to skyrocket, creating a "stock price---coin price" spiral effect that encourages more listed companies to follow suit.

More importantly, the new government's shift in crypto assets policy has provided institutional guarantees for this process. The government has not only publicly expressed support for Bitcoin but also proposed to treat Bitcoin as a strategic reserve asset for the United States. This historic decision has further intensified the "normalization" process of Bitcoin, transforming it from an emerging speculative tool into a part of the global financial system.

The financialization process of Bitcoin can be described as a meticulously planned "top-level conspiracy". When the Bitcoin ETF was approved in the U.S. market, Wall Street giants rushed in, and companies began to devour Bitcoin like whales, the entire market underwent profound changes. Crypto Assets are no longer just an investment product for a small circle; they are gradually becoming an important part of the global capital market, heralding profound changes in the financial sector in the future.

Through this series of policy adjustments, market changes, and corporate behaviors, the status of Bitcoin has undergone a tremendous transformation. In the future, it is likely to be not just an alternative option among asset classes, but one of the core assets in the global economic system.

The Impact of the New SEC Chairman

In addition to the factors mentioned above, another important reason for Bitcoin breaking through $100,000 is the confirmation of the new SEC chairman.

On the early morning of December 5, 2024, the government announced that Paul Atkins would become the new chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. This decision marks a significant shift in U.S. financial regulatory policy and could have far-reaching effects on the future of capital markets. Paul Atkins, 66 years old, is a financial regulatory expert with a deep background who has long been committed to promoting business freedom and reducing government intervention.

Atkins' political stance and regulatory philosophy align with many conservative financial experts; he advocates for a more market-oriented policy and argues for reducing the regulatory burden on businesses. After the global financial crisis in 2008, he publicly opposed the Dodd-Frank Act, which strengthened the regulation of financial institutions and imposed hefty fines on companies suspected of violating securities laws. He believes that excessive financial regulation stifles innovation and business vitality, particularly in the fields of digital currency and fintech, a position that has made him one of the representatives of market liberalism.

Atkins's political influence was evident even during the previous government's period. At that time, he played an important role in the transition team, advocating for the government to adopt a more relaxed financial regulatory policy and calling for the withdrawal of many regulations that impacted the free operation of financial markets. This position was implemented after the previous government took office, and the government clearly expressed its support for reducing the regulatory burden on financial institutions.

According to reports, Atkins' appointment may signal that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission will adopt a more lenient regulatory strategy, particularly regarding the digital transformation of financial markets and the regulation of Crypto Assets. Atkins has repeatedly stated that he supports solving financial regulatory issues through market-based methods and emphasizes that the government should respect the free choices of businesses and investors. His regulatory philosophy may provide greater space for technological innovation and the development of capital markets, especially in the fields of Crypto Assets and financial technology. With the popularity of digital asset investment tools like Bitcoin ETFs, Atkins' policy direction could accelerate the legalization process of digital assets in mainstream financial markets.

In addition, under Atkins' leadership, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission may pay more attention to innovative assets and technologies in the financial markets, reducing excessive intervention in traditional financial markets and promoting the rapid development of emerging financial products. His appointment is also seen as a kind of "unblocking" for the financial industry, especially in a series of financial innovations and digital asset areas that were previously under strict regulation. This shift will not only affect investor confidence but may also change the competitive landscape of the entire financial industry.

Looking to the Future

Bitcoin has achieved a 125 million times increase in value over a span of 15 years, bringing a brand new industry to the world. This industry now has millions of practitioners, hundreds of millions of users, and hundreds of segmented tracks. More importantly, with the completion of the initial asset accumulation, the encryption industry is ushering in a brand new dawn. The combination with artificial intelligence, the RWA associated with real-world assets, as well as the development of related tracks like the equal rights of coins and stocks and wealth management, which couple traditional funds with crypto funds, will further progress. As encryption technology is adopted on a large scale in the real world, we can expect to see more crypto applications emerge in the future.

Bitcoin breaking through $100,000 is just the beginning, like a pure child growing into a vibrant teenager, marking the arrival of a whole new era. The Crypto Assets industry is advancing at an unprecedented pace, and the future will bring more exciting breakthroughs and innovations.