Bitcoin hits new all-time high above $112,000 as investors pile into stocks and crypto

Bitcoin reached a new record high on Wednesday night, surging past the $112,000 mark for the first time.

The cryptocurrency rose to $112,009 late on Wednesday, surpassing its previous record of $111,999, before slipping back to $111,294.17 by late morning trading in London.

The jump comes as investors throw their weight behind risk assets like cryptocurrencies and stocks, despite the latest tariff rumblings from Donald Trump.

Shares in chipmaker Nvidia, meanwhile, spiked early on Wednesday, reaching $164.15 and pushing the S&P 500 back towards its 3 July record high of $6,279.35.

Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at IG, said: ‘Nvidia’s brief ascent to a $4trillion market cap marks a defining moment for markets and underscores the extent to which artificial intelligence is driving investor enthusiasm.

‘Bitcoin was in on the act too, confirming the ebullient summer mood prevailing among investors. Perhaps most notable is the market’s apparent indifference to escalating trade tensions.’

Beauchamp added: ‘Perhaps most notable is the market’s apparent indifference to escalating trade tensions. Trump’s 50 percent tariff on copper imports and threats toward Brazil triggered little reaction.’

Increasing institutional adoption of bitcoin has also served to drive the price of the crypto token over recent weeks, with a number of public firms having added Bitcoin to their treasuries, including the likes of GameStop, Metaplanet, Tesla and Twenty One Capital in the US.

In the UK, there has also been a swathe of small-cap bitcoin treasury firms launching their own public listings.

British bitcoin treasury firm Smarter Web Company, which IPO’d back in April, saw its own shares rise from 2.97.50p each to 402.50 pence from 7 to 9 July, with its market cap rising to £961.75million on the back of bitcoin’s rise. The firm previously hit a market cap of more than £1billion last month.

In fact, public company bitcoin purchases outpaced those of ETFs in the second quarter of the year.

Nick Jones, founder and chief executive of Zumo, said: ‘The rise is underpinned by increasing institutional adoption and resurgent retail demand, reflecting confidence that crypto has arrived in the mainstream and is now reshaping finance.

Likewise, Lukas Enzersdorfer-Konrad, deputy chief executive of Bitpanda, said: ‘Bitcoin’s recent surge is no coincidence – it’s fuelled by a perfect mix of supportive macro conditions and a steady rise in institutional interest. As liquidity returns to the market and the money supply expands in both Europe and the US, investors are looking for assets with real potential – and bitcoin is increasingly seen as one of them.

‘We’re seeing growing retail demand, still underpinned by strong ETF inflows and continued institutional adoption. All signs point to Bitcoin’s role as a mainstream asset becoming more firmly established than ever.’

There is expectation that bitcoin could continue to rise throughout the year.

Financial product comparison site Finder says the average end of year price prediction for Bitcoin is now $145,167, with 61 per cent of its panel of crypto analysts viewing bitcoin as a buy.