BTC hits $92K

Bitcoin spent Wednesday morning climbing from $88,000 to $92,000, a new record high.

Just hours earlier, BTC was flatlining and the mover of the hour was XRP, the seventh-largest crypto, which had advanced 4% in 24 hours, settling at about 67 cents; this move happened a half-day after an XRP spot price of 75 cents momentarily came into view.

With BTC charging toward $100K (seemingly) and crypto at large in a manic state, could XRP be marshaling stamina for a stab at its own monumental mark? Indeed, the next two days "may be the last chance to buy XRP under $1," The Crypto Basic said, citing Edo Farina, a commentator on X.

Meanwhile, checking quickly on an XRP rival, the Lumen, or XLM, native token of Stellar, we see nothing but pure-green incandescence. It spent the past 24 hours rising from 11 cents to, at one point yesterday, nearly 14 cents. Cheerleaders for Stellar's rise in the payments space are latching on to a recently cemented relationship with Mastercard that is said to be integrating Stellar into Mastercard Crypto Credential, a service that helps verify interactions among consumers and businesses using blockchain networks.

If use-case narratives are not your bag, then go right ahead and dig the legend of Peanut the Squirrel (PNUT). The memecoin, based on an upstate New York squirrel that went from internet celebrity to cause célèbre, has more than tripled to $1.50 just since Tuesday morning. PNUT is now the 70th-largest digital asset after gaining 1,000% in one week.

As of 8:05 a.m. (EST) today, total crypto assets worldwide stood at $3.04 trillion, down 2% in 24 hours, per CoinGecko.

Trump trade beneficiary-in-chief Dogecoin (DOGE) might be in the midst of coming in for a landing after losing its $0.40 handle over the past 10 or so hours.

DOGE, the sixth-largest coin, has soared 250% in the past month, reaching as high as 41 cents. Its community seems convinced that the original memecoin is bound for further glory (maybe even a dollar) following the downright bizarre news last night that, yes, president-elect Donald Trump has appointed Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy to co-lead a newly formed agency dubbed the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

Staying with politically connected Big Ten coins, the steepest one-day loss (-7%) has been notched by No. 10 Cardano (ADA). At the height of yesterday's altcoin frenzy in a time of post-election euphoria, ADA touched $0.63. ADA last surpassed $0.70 back in March. It's all-time high above $3 was hit in September of 2021. Looking ahead, hail to this chief catalyst: Charles Hoskinson, Cardano's founder, has been floated as a potential candidate for the role of Trump's crypto whisperer (CoinDesk).

The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) ostensibly will seek to curb wasteful government spending. It's been described as a "government efficiency unit." But it's not an actual government department. And it will exist temporarily. (Actually, this almost feels like something Musk invented purely to have a laugh at the expense of the U.S. federal government while elegantly juicing DOGE's staying power).

Musk and Ramaswamy, per CoinDesk, citing a Trump post on Truth Social, will work from outside the government to offer guidance to drive large-scale structural reform. Musk fancies the creation of a citizen-curated leaderboard highlighting the most boneheaded expenditures, mixing "transparency with public engagement," CoinDesk said.

"Trump's DOGE gift to Musk is basically just a consulting gig," Quartz said.