The price of Bitcoin hit a record $89,000 today. The price is more than double the January price of about $40k, a 122% increase! The price however dropped slightly but remaining above $85k.
The surge in price is been credited to US President Donald Trump recent election victory. It started on the US election night when it was clear that Trump would win.
Trump has embraced crypto, calling himself “the crypto president” and saying his objective is to make the US the “crypto capital of the world.” With technologist and entrepreneur Elon Musk being an unofficial Trump advisor, the expectation of the market is that Musk’s views on cryptocurrencies with be adopted by the Trump administration.
Crypto enthusiasts are therefore hoping for relatively lax regulation compared to the Biden government whose stance was to rein in cryptocurrencies.
The rise in price means people holding Bitcoin have made significant gains this year. Some experts have said that the rise could surpass $100,000 in the coming months. Of course, nothing is guaranteed.
In Zimbabwe, crypto trading remains an underground activity since a government ban on crypto trading using formal financial systems back in 2018. A significant number of local enthusiasts and traders lost their crypto following the ban as the exchanges in the country froze crypto they held.
Zimbabweans however still use crypto in the shadows as a means to do activities such as forex trading on the internet. Crypto is also sought by people that have fallen victim to online scams and ransomware attacks.
Typically, crypto traders get USD cash and transfer the crypto to the recipient, who then uses it online. The crypto traders either get their Bitcoin from bigger wholesale traders or by buying the Bitcoin from end users looking for USD cash.
Because it’s underground, it’s unclear however how big the crypto market is in Zimbabwe.
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