Nov 21 (Reuters) - Bitcoin neared $100,000 for the first

time on Thursday as the election of Republican Donald Trump as

president fuelled expectations that his administration will

create a friendly regulatory environment for

cryptocurrencies.

The world's biggest and best-known cryptocurrency has

more than doubled from this year's low of $38,505 and is up

about 45% in the two weeks since Trump's sweeping election win.

Here are key events in bitcoin's journey towards $100,000:

2008: Satoshi Nakamoto, the pseudonym used by the

cryptocurrency's presumed developer, introduces the concept of

bitcoin

2010: The first retail transaction takes place when a user

pays 10,000 bitcoin for two Papa John's pizzas

2013: As bitcoin's popularity grows, Cameron and Tyler

Winklevoss, co-founders of crypto exchange Gemini, file their

first application with the U.S. Securities and Exchange

Commission to create a spot bitcoin ETF.

Grayscale Investments launches the Bitcoin Investment Trust,

an open-ended private bitcoin trust.

2016: The Winklevoss brothers adjust their application numerous

times, such as the exchange on which the product would be

traded. They also file amendments naming State Street as

administrator. Grayscale files with the SEC to convert its

bitcoin trust into a spot bitcoin ETF.

2017: The SEC rejects the Winklevoss application on the grounds

bitcoin markets were not mature enough. Grayscale withdraws its

first attempt to convert its trust into an ETF, saying the

regulatory environment was not developed enough.

2018: The SEC rejects the Winklevoss twins' second application

to launch a spot bitcoin ETF, saying cryptocurrency exchanges do

not have the necessary controls to prevent manipulation.

2020: Grayscale transforms its trust into an SEC-reporting

entity, and its shares begin trading on the pink sheets, for

stocks that trade over the counter. Although not an ETF, it is

the first publicly traded bitcoin fund in the U.S.

2021: The first spot bitcoin ETF launches in Canada. Gary

Gensler replaces Jay Clayton as SEC chair in April.

In October, the SEC approves the ProShares Bitcoin Trust

listed on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, noting the

CME has a satisfactory mechanism for surveilling abuse in the

futures market. It is the first U.S.-listed futures-based

bitcoin ETF, accumulating $1 billion in assets within its first

days of trading - faster than any other ETF.

Also in October, Grayscale again submits an application to

the SEC to convert its trust into a spot bitcoin ETF.

2022: The SEC rejects several applications from would-be spot

bitcoin ETF issuers, including SkyBridge, Fidelity and Bitwise.

The SEC also rejects Grayscale's application, prompting the

company to sue the agency.

Amid crashing crypto prices, multiple crypto companies file for

bankruptcy, including Three Arrows Capital, Celsius Network and

FTX, whose founder Sam Bankman-Fried is also charged with fraud.

2023:

May: Cathie Woods' ARK Investments and CBOE Global Markets ( CBOE )

file for a spot bitcoin ETF, giving the SEC a maximum

of 240 days to approve or reject the application.

June: BlackRock ( BLK ) files a spot bitcoin ETF application

with the SEC, raising industry hopes the agency may approve the

product and sending the price of bitcoin to a one-year high. A

flurry of other issuers and exchanges, including Fidelity and

Invesco, file bitcoin ETF applications in the subsequent weeks

and months.

August: A federal appeals court in Washington D.C. rules in

favor of Grayscale, saying the SEC did not justify why it had

rejected its proposal. Europe's first spot bitcoin ETF begins

trading on the Euronext Amsterdam stock exchange.

October: The SEC opts not to appeal the court's ruling in the

Grayscale case and is required to reexamine the application.

2024:

Jan. 10: The SEC approves 11 proposals from issuers

including BlackRock ( BLK ), Fidelity and VanEck, among others, to

launch spot bitcoin ETFs.

February: Net inflows into the 10 largest ETFs hit $4

billion in the first month, according to LSEG data.

March: Bitcoin tops $70,000 for the first time to hit a

record high, having doubled in value in the five months.

June: Trump pitches himself as a champion for cryptocurrency and

slammed Democrats' attempts to regulate the sector during a San

Francisco fundraiser.

July: Trump tells a bitcoin conference that, if elected, he will

create a strategic national bitcoin stockpile and will ensure

the United States is the "crypto capital of the planet."

October: The SEC grants "accelerated approval" to U.S. exchanges

to list and trade options tied to 11 spot bitcoin ETFs.

Nov 6: Trump is declared winner of the presidential

election, sparking a huge rally in a range of assets, with

bitcoin being the standout gainer.

Nov 12: Total crypto market cap reaches $3 trillion for

the first time. Year-to-date ETF net inflows hit $25.8 billion,

according to LSEG data.

Nov 21: Bitcoin nears $100,000 for the first time in

history, driven by a swell of buying from investors in

anticipation of Trump dismantling a lot of the regulation around

crypto investment. The price has risen by around 40% since the

election.