Bitcoin surges past $120,000, riding momentum in D.C. and markets

NBC News

16 hours ago

The value of a single bitcoin surpassed $120,000 early Monday, the latest record price for the digital token that has set multiple all-time highs in recent weeks amid bullishness about developments on Capitol Hill and concerns about inflation and the U.S. dollar's declining value.
Because it remains prone to large price swings, bitcoin's trajectory tends to track that of riskier assets like tech stocks — although it has outperformed those soundly in 2025. Year to date through Friday, only gold — up 27.7% — has outperformed bitcoin, up 25.9%. By comparison, the tech-focused Nasdaq 100 index has gained 8.7%, while the broad S&P 500 has climbed 7%.
Early Monday morning, the nearly 20 million individual bitcoins in existence are worth a combined $2.4 trillion, making the entire asset class the world's fifth-most valuable, surpassing Amazon and closing in on Apple, according to crypto news site CoinTelegraph.com. Apple had a $3.1 trillion market valuation as of Monday morning.
Most of this year's gains have come in the past few weeks. They've been fueled by a host of factors, including the partial pause in President Donald Trump's trade war and the passage of his tax cut and spending bill, which, on balance, cuts taxes while also increasing the U.S.'s debt — both bullish for increased bitcoin investment.
The dollar's declining value relative to other currencies has also made bitcoin a more attractive asset to own as a hedge among international investors against potential changes to the dollar's status as reserve currency.
Finally, there's been increased interest among large financial firms in crypto thanks in part to crypto-focused legislation.
Indeed, the GOP-led House of Representatives has declared this week 'crypto week' as it takes up three different bills related to regulating digital assets, including the GENIUS Act, which would clarify how companies can issue their own digital tokens. According to Reuters, Democrats — many of whom remain opposed to making crypto more mainstream — are expected to offer several amendments to the bills, though it was unclear whether any would be successful.
Crypto's recent uplift has added some $620 million to Trump's estimated net worth, Bloomberg reported earlier this month. Some Democrats see those gains as reason enough to oppose legislation that would pave the way for wider crypto adoption.
'These bills would make Congress complicit in Trump's unprecedented crypto scam,' Rep. Maxine Waters of California, the top Democrat on the House financial services committee, said in a statement.
There's debate about how much higher bitcoin will go the rest of the year. Its trajectory remains strongly tied to the outlook for global interest rates. When these are relatively lower — as they have been recently — there's more money available to purchase riskier assets like bitcoin.
But with developed economies that have historically kept government spending in check now set to increase funding, interest rates are likely to begin ramping up in response to inflation concerns,
"The risk that central banks shift focus back to the risks of re-accelerating inflation may develop into a potential headwind for Bitcoin in the latter half of the year," Matthew Weller Global Head of Research at FOREX.com said in a note published earlier this month, "especially with fiscal policy (government spending and tax cuts) becoming more accommodative."