Bitcoin rose past US$70 000 for the first time since June, bolstered by inflows into dedicated exchange-traded funds as well as speculation about potential outcomes from next week’s US election.

The largest digital asset was last changing hands at about $70 850 as of 7:26am SAST. Smaller tokens, including second-ranked ether, also posted modest gains.

Bitcoin is viewed by some as a so-called Trump trade because Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump embraced digital assets during campaigning. Trump is ahead in prediction markets, while polls show a neck-and-neck race against Democratic candidate vice President Kamala Harris.

The token drew succour from an overnight rally in stocks and is continuing to “price in a Donald Trump election victory”, Tony Sycamore, a market analyst at IG Australia, wrote in a note. Bitcoin needs a sustained break past $70 000 to boost confidence that it can rally past March’s record of $73 798, he added.

Trump has vowed to make the US the crypto capital of the planet. Harris has adopted a more measured approach, pledging to support a regulatory framework for the industry. Their positions contrast with a crackdown on the sector under President Joe Biden.

Options traders have increased bets that bitcoin will reach a peak of $80 000 by the end of November regardless of who wins the election. Implied volatility around election day on 5 November is elevated. Spot-bitcoin ETFs in the US have attracted about $3.1-billion in net inflows so far this month.

Read: Bitcoin traders are betting on a Trump victory

Bitcoin has jumped 66% in 2024 and lately weathered scaled-back wagers on Federal Reserve interest-rate cuts as well as a report of greater US scrutiny of tether, a linchpin stablecoin for crypto trading. — Sunil Jagtiani, (c) 2024 Bloomberg LP