Major cryptocurrency tokens, including bitcoin and BNB, reached record highs this week amid government turmoil around the world that drove up alternative asset prices, which elated China’s crypto community as the country reconsiders digital assets such as stablecoins.
Bitcoin passed the US$126,000 level on Monday, a new all-time high for the world’s largest cryptocurrency token, before falling more than 1 per cent to below US$124,000 on Tuesday.
BNB, the native token of the world’s largest crypto exchange Binance, also hit its own record of US$1,268 on Tuesday. The latest crypto boom propelled Binance founder Changpeng Zhao’s personal fortune to US$89.7 billion, according to a Forbes billionaire ranking.
Still, Zhao on Tuesday denied that figure, saying on social media platform X that it was “way too high”.
While the reaction of Chinese crypto enthusiasts to bitcoin’s new high was muted on mainland social media, many celebrated the token’s latest achievement on X and envisioned an unprecedented crypto bull market.
The latest gains came as global investors flocked to assets outside major currencies such as the US dollar, which has been under pressure amid a week-long US government shutdown.
Offshore yuan stablecoins have emerged as an area of potential importance for the global competitiveness of the Chinese currency. Photo: Shutterstock Images