December 5 (UPI) – Bitcoin, the largest and oldest cryptocurrency in the United States, hit $100,000 for the first time on Wednesday. Many analysts believe the milestone is due to President-elect Donald Trump’s election victory last month.

Over the past month, Bitcoin has surged more than 40%, with its latest milestone coming just hours after Trump appointed crypto-friendly Paul Atkins as chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Analysts believe that Atkins’ appointment as SEC chairman is a sign that Trump plans to form a crypto-friendly cabinet that will make it easier for cryptocurrencies to raise capital in the US stock market.

“Paul is a proven leader for common-sense regulations,” Trump said Wednesday. “He also recognizes that digital assets and other innovations are critical to making America greater than ever before.”

Earlier this year, Trump claimed: “Crypto is the future. Let’s embrace this incredible technology and be a global leader in the digital economy.” After he and his sons founded the crypto company World Liberty Financial, he also started his own venture in the cryptocurrency space.

During his presidential campaign, Trump vowed to build a national Bitcoin stockpile and even considered giving the White House the new role of “crypto czar” to oversee policy.

Bitcoin’s rise over the last month is also due to the SEC’s announcement that current Chairman Gary Gensler will step down on January 20, ahead of Trump’s inauguration. During his time at the SEC, Gensler cracked down on crypto and added regulations.

On Wednesday, Bitcoin hits its $100,000 milestone, two years after the price fell below $17,000 during the collapse of crypto exchange FTX.

“The fall of FTX caused enormous harm to over 1 million users,” Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., said in 2022, “many of whom were everyday people who invested their hard-earned savings in the FTX cryptocurrency exchange .” only to see it all disappear within seconds.

After Trump promised to make the United States the “crypto capital of the planet” and accepted campaign donations in cryptocurrency, Bitcoin rose from $69,374 on Election Day to as high as $103,713 on Wednesday, according to CoinDesk.