BTC Reached A New Record High of USD USD ~106,500 Over The Weekend - In This AM’s Note, We Review Select Narratives Fueling BTC’s Performance. According to reporting last week for Axios, Donald Trump ‘is going to be very focused on the price of [BTC]' when he takes office in 35 days. According to sources cited by the outlet, BTC is ‘another stock market for him' and that he wants BTC to reach USD 150,000 early in his term.’ The Axios report comes as Trump’s administration takes form with BTC proponents in key national positions. Examples include Howard Lutnick as Secretary of Commerce, Paul Atkins as SEC head, and David Sacks as the first ‘Crypto and AI Czar.’ Non-economic positions, such as Tulsi Gabbard or Robert F. Kennedy Jr. nominations for directors of National Intelligence and Health and Human Services, respectively, are also notably BTC proponents. The extent to which Trump is surrounded by BTC proponents has given confidence to the view that the incoming president is dedicated to establishing some form of a BTC reserve. The BTC reserve represents Trump’s flagship crypto policy and its feasibility has been the subject of intense debate. Some BTC proponents have suggested Trump could establish the most basic version of a BTC reserve via an executive order in the first days of his administration. Besides being surrounded by BTC proponents, the idea of a national BTC reserve has been given additional credence at the state level. Texas and Pennsylvania have both introduced legislation to establish state BTC reserves. For BTC proponents, its sovereign-neutral nature has been evident since the asset’s inception. However, the idea that BTC acts as a hedge against broader uncertainty has been presented to an increasingly wide audience by Paul Tudor Jones, Larry Fink, Michael Saylor, and others. Ahead of Trump’s term and the uncertainty associated with policies related to tariffs, immigration, the US dollar, etc., BTC’s non-sovereign nature may be additionally attractive to some investors. Commenting on BTC’s performance on Friday, FRNT’s head of data and analytics, Strahina Savic, told Bloomberg that ‘[m]ainstay US financial institutions are being given the green light to participate in this market and the market is beginning to price this new dynamic.’ The Biden administration had taken a staunchly antagonistic approach to digital assets via policies that included limiting crypto firm’s access to traditional banking services. On the other hand, under Trump, traditional financial firms are being given the green light to participate in crypto. This public support for BTC and crypto is a significant change for the industry, which has often been treated as a pariah and taboo asset class by US officials.

- MicroStrategy (NASDAQ: MSTR) has been added to the Nasdaq-100 index, and will be included in Invesco's QQQ ETF, effective December 23. Separately, the firm [announced](https://www.microstrategy.com/press/microstrategy-acquires-15350-btc-achieves-btc-yield-of-46-qtd-72-ytd-now-holds-439000-btc_12-16-2024) a purchase of 15,350 BTC for ~$1.5B at USD 100,386 per coin, bringing its total BTC holdings to 439k coins. MSTR is up ~3% in pre-market trading, roughly in-line with the performance of BTC since the close of US equity markets on Friday. - [link](https://www.cnbc.com/2024/12/16/microstrategy-shares-jump-as-bitcoin-proxy-will-join-nasdaq-100-index-and-qqq-etf.html) - @CNBC - AMP Ltd allocated 5 basis points of its total assets, worth USD ~17M, to BTC futures. The decision establishes the firm as one of the first major Australian pension managers to enter the crypto space. The investment was characterized by AMP's Senior Portfolio Manager as conservative and within controlled risk parameters. - [link](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-12-13/australian-pension-fund-reveals-rare-wager-on-bitcoin-btc-futures) - @Bloomberg - BTC miner Riot Platforms (NASDAQ: RIOT) acquired 5,117 BTC for USD 510M. The acquisition, financed through a USD 525M bond offering, increases Riot's BTC holdings to a total of 16,728, worth about USD 1.68B. - [link](https://www.barrons.com/articles/riot-platforms-stock-bitcoin-b0b01afb) - @RIOT - Semler Scientific (NASDAQ: SMLR) purchased 211 BTC at a cost of USD 21.5M, increasing its total BTC holdings to 2,084 coins. The acquisition was financed through an at-the-market (ATM) offering and the company's operational cash flows. Semler also expanded its ATM offering capacity to USD 150M, having already secured USD 100M in gross proceeds. - [link](https://ir.semlerscientific.com/news-releases/news-release-details/semler-scientificr-announces-updated-btc-and-atm-activity-1) - @SMLR - The UK plans to prohibit public crypto offers. Announced by the Financial Conduct Authority, the new legislation will build on existing promotion rules to restrict unregistered crypto firms from targeting UK clients. Only certain exempted platforms and offers will be unaffected. - [link](https://www.coindesk.com/policy/2024/12/16/uk-set-to-prohibit-public-offers-of-crypto) - @CoinDesk - Galaxy Digital (TSXV: GLXY) has hired former Point72 CFO Anthony Paquette. Paquette will replace the firm’s current CFO, Alex Ioffe, who transitions to a senior adviser role. - [link](https://www.coindesk.com/business/2024/12/13/michael-novogratz-s-galaxy-appoints-former-point72-exec-as-cfo) - @CoinDesk

- South China Morning Post: [Chinese Fund Touts Offshore Crypto Exposure In Alipay Ad Amid Bitcoin Boom](https://www.scmp.com/tech/blockchain/article/3290564/chinese-fund-touts-offshore-crypto-exposure-alipay-ad-amid-bitcoin-boom) - Bloomberg: [Bitcoin Rises To Record After Longest Weekly Winning Run Since 2021](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-12-15/bitcoin-btc-hits-record-after-longest-weekly-winning-run-since-2021)

- These Five Wall Street Titans Thought Bitcoin Was A Fad. Here’s What They Say Now. [WSJ, December 15, 2024](https://www.wsj.com/finance/currencies/bitcoin-dimon-fink-griffin-buffet-dalio-crypto-af5af1a5) - The WSJ discusses changing BTC perceptions among the leaders of US financial institutions.

- [How Solana Beat Out Ethereum To Nab New Crypto Developers In 2024,](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qvyfirgv9K0) Unchained Podcast, December 14, 2024 - Electric Capital General Partner Maria Shen discusses the firm's annual report which found Solana overtook Ethereum in regards to new developers entering crypto.