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Bitcoin has doubled this year

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Trump, pro-crypto Congress seen clearing regulatory clouds

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Elon Musk, a major Trump ally, supports cryptocurrencies

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Crypto-related stocks have surged

(Recasts, adds fresh comments, crypto market capitalisation and

updates prices)

Dec 5 (Reuters) - Bitcoin catapulted above $100,000 for

the first time on Thursday, a milestone hailed even by sceptics

as a coming-of-age for cryptocurrencies as investors bet on a

friendly U.S. administration to cement cryptos' place in

financial markets.

The total value of the cryptocurrency market has almost

doubled over the year so far to hit a record just shy of $3.8

trillion, according to data provider CoinGecko. By comparison,

Apple ( AAPL ) alone is worth about $3.7 trillion.

Bitcoin's march from the libertarian fringe to Wall Street

has minted millionaires, a new asset class and popularised the

concept of "decentralised finance" in a volatile and often

controversial period since its creation 16 years ago.

Bitcoin has more than doubled in value this year and is up

more than 50% in the four weeks since Donald Trump's sweeping

election victory, which also saw a slew of pro-crypto lawmakers

being elected to Congress.

Once it broke $100,000 in Thursday's Asian morning, it was

soon above $103,000 and was last fetching $103,335.

"We're witnessing a paradigm shift," said Mike Novogratz,

founder and CEO of U.S. crypto firm Galaxy Digital.

"Bitcoin and the entire digital asset ecosystem are on the

brink of entering the financial mainstream - this momentum is

fuelled by institutional adoption, advancements in tokenisation

and payments, and a clearer regulatory path."

Trump embraced digital assets during his campaign,

promising to make the United States the "crypto capital of the

planet" and to accumulate a national stockpile of bitcoin.

"We were trading basically sideways for about seven months,

then immediately after Nov. 5, U.S. investors resumed buying

hand-over-fist," said Joe McCann, CEO and founder of Asymmetric,

a Miami digital assets hedge fund.

On Wednesday, Trump said he would nominate Paul Atkins to

run the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Atkins, a former SEC commissioner, has been involved in

crypto policy as co-chair of the Token Alliance, which works to

"develop best practices for digital asset issuances and trading

platforms," and the Chamber of Digital Commerce.

"Atkins will offer a new perspective, anchored by a deep

understanding of the digital asset ecosystem," said Blockchain

Association CEO Kristin Smith.

"We look forward to working with him ... and ushering in -

together - a new wave of American crypto innovation."

A slew of crypto companies including Ripple, Kraken and

Circle are also jostling for a seat on Trump's promised crypto

advisory council.

PART OF THE LANDSCAPE

Bitcoin has proven a survivor through precipitous downturns.

Its move into six-figure territory is a remarkable comeback

from a dip below $16,000 in 2022 when the industry was reeling

from the collapse of the FTX exchange. Founder Sam Bankman-Fried

was subsequently jailed.

Analysts say the growing embrace of bitcoin by big investors

this year has been a driving force behind the record-breaking

rally.

U.S.-listed bitcoin exchange-traded funds were approved in

January and have been a conduit for large-scale buying, with

more than $4 billion streaming into these funds since the

election.

"Roughly 3% of the total supply of bitcoins that will ever

exist have been purchased in 2024 by institutional money," said

Geoff Kendrick, global head of digital assets research at

Standard Chartered.

"Digital assets, as an asset class, is becoming normalised,"

he said. "If you fast forward a number of years on trading

floors you'll have a sales and trading desk...which will sit

alongside FX and rates and commodities."

It is already becoming increasingly financialised, with the

launch of bitcoin futures in 2017 and a strong debut for

options on BlackRock's ETF in November.

Crypto-related stocks have soared along with the bitcoin

price, with shares in bitcoin miner MARA Holdings ( MARA ) and

exchange operator Coinbase each up around 65% in

November.

Trump himself unveiled a new crypto business, World Liberty

Financial, in September, although details have been scarce and

billionaire Elon Musk, a major Trump ally, is also a proponent

of cryptocurrencies.

'WHO CAN PROHIBIT IT'

The cryptocurrency industry has been criticised for its

massive energy usage, while crypto crime remains a concern, and

the underlying technology is yet to deliver a major revolution

in the way money moves around the globe.

Still, as Russian President Vladimir Putin pointed out at an

investment conference on Wednesday: "Who can prohibit it? No

one." And its longevity is perhaps testament to a degree of

resilience.

"As time goes by it's proving itself as part of the

financial landscape," said Shane Oliver, chief economist and

head of investment strategy at AMP in Sydney.

"I find it very hard to value it ... it's anyone's guess.

But it does have a momentum aspect to it and at the moment the

momentum is up."

(Compiled by Reuters staff; Editing by Alden Bentley, Lisa

Shumaker, Chizu Nomiyama and Shri Navaratnam)