Bitcoin leapt to a new record just below $112k as institutional investors continued to warm to cryptocurrency as a more mainstream asset.
Bitcoin Hits All-Time High Near $112k Amid Growing Institutional Interest
23 May 2025 - 10:14 CEST
The leading digital asset climbed as much as 4.6% on 22 May, according to data from CoinMarketCap (CMC), with the CMC weighted average peaking at $111,970.17 on the day.
Over the past month, the cryptocurrency has gained more than a third in value, buoyed by an easing of President Trump’s tariffs and growing support from the US government for digital assets. Capital inflows into Bitcoin-focused funds have exceeded $3.6 billion this month, according to data from sosovalue.com, with corporate and government institutional investors eager not to miss out on the bullish trend.
The rally has been driven not only from investments in ETFs (Exchange-Traded Funds), but also by increasing regulatory clarity in the US for digital assets. Recent bipartisan progress on stablecoin legislation has further boosted confidence, signaling a more certain environment for crypto development.
The new record for Bitcoin also came the same day the president was hosting a private dinner for the largest holders of his own $Trump memecoin. The event has prompted criticism and even street protests from Democrats, although the White House Press Secretary said he was attending the dinner in a private capacity, meaning details of the attendees do no need to be shared. Trump’s optimistic stance and family investment in cryptocurrencies continues to fuel investor sentiment.
That’s emboldened some analysts to revive and promote their more optimistic forecasts. Standard Chartered projects Bitcoin could reach $120,000 by the end of Q2, driven by institutional investment activity and the US Treasury Premium—a measure of the additional cost paid by foreign investors to hold US Treasuries compared with directly purchasing USD. Geoffrey Kendrick, who leads Standard Chartered’s digital asset analysts, has suggested Bitcoin tends to track this premium and has set an end-of-year target of $200,000.
Ryan Lee of Bitget estimates a potential price of $180,000 within the year, although he cautions that traders taking profits from the record gains could cause Bitcoin to dip back to $90,000-$95,000 before resuming its upward momentum.
