Bitcoin reaches a record high on Thursday, driven by glowing expectations for looser monetary policy from the Federal Reserve and recent financial reforms.

The world’s largest crypto-asset by market capitalisation climbed as much as 0.9% to $124,002.49 in early Asia trading, surpassing its previous peak hit in July.

On the day, the second largest crypto-token ether hit $4,780.04, the highest level since late 2021.

Analyst Tony Sycamore from IG Market noted that bitcoin’s rally is fueled by certainty around Fed rate cuts, ongoing institutional buying and the initiatives by Trump administration to promote investments in Crypto assets.

He stated that, “technically, a sustain break above $12k could propel BTC to $150,000”.

So far in 2025, Bitcoin has risen nearly 32% benefiting from significant regulatory inventories for the sector following President Donald Trump’s return to the White House.

Trump has dubbed himself the “crypto president”, and his family have made notable investments in the crypto currency space over the past year.

An executive order last week paved the way to allow crypto assets in 401(k) retirement accounts, highlighting an increasingly favorable regulatory environment in the United States.

Throughout 2025, the crypto industry has achieved multiple regulatory wins, including stable coin regulations and the US securities regulator’s efforts to revise rules for digital assets.

Bitcoin’s surge has also sparked a broader rally in the asset class over the past few months, shrugging off the tremors of Trump’s wide-ranging tariff policies.

According to data from CoinMarketCap, the crypto sector’s overall market capitalisation has ballooned to over $4.18 trillion, up from about $2.5 trillion in November 2024, when Trump won the US presidential election.

The latest push for crypto adoption in the United States came via an executive order on Thursday last week, which would ease access to the asset class in 401(k) retirement accounts.

The executive order could also be a boost for asset managers such as BlackRock and Fidelity, which operate crypto exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

Crypto’s push into retirement savings can also be peppered with risks, as the asset class tends to experience much more volatility than stocks and bonds, which asset managers had typically relied on for such accounts.