Bitcoin price soars to record high above $81,000 after Donald Trump's election win

During the campaign, Mr Trump embraced digital assets – promising to make the US the “crypto capital of the planet” and to accumulate a national stockpile of Bitcoin.

Bitcoin soared to a record high of above $81,000 (£62,792) per coin on Monday following the election of Donald Trump and the expectation that the Republicans will win both Houses of Congress.

During the campaign, Mr Trump embraced digital assets – promising to make the US the “crypto capital of the planet” and to accumulate a national stockpile of Bitcoin.

Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell said: “Bitcoin is the one asset that was always going to soar if Mr Trump returned to the White House. A brief jump to $75,281 put the cryptocurrency at a new all-time high and fired up traders to speculate when, not if, it will smash through $100,000.

“Mr Trump has already declared his love of the digital currency and crypto traders now have a new narrative by which to get even more excited about where the price could go.”

The Bitcoin price is up 95pc so far this year, and over 800,000pc since it started trading on crypto exchanges over a decade ago, according to data from eToro.

Dubbed “digital gold”, Bitcoin has also been touted as a hedge against inflation. But the world’s most famous cryptocurrency has a chequered history and its price is notoriously volatile.

So is now a good time to buy? Telegraph Money takes a look at what you need to know. This guide will cover:

– Why has Bitcoin’s value risen?

With Republicans poised to take both chambers of Congress, the prevailing view is that the President-elect will usher in a regulatory environment that is more favourable to cryptocurrencies.

The cryptocurrency industry spent around $130m backing pro-crypto candidates, Bloomberg reported.

Moreover, Mr Trump has pledged to remove the current leadership of the Securities and Exchange Commission that is battling crypto companies in court, including crypto-exchange Coinbase.

Other cryptocurrencies including Dogecoin – long favoured by Elon Musk, the richest man in the world and Trump ally – have risen even higher and outperformed Bitcoin as investors bet on the market as a whole.