On Monday, the exchange rate of
Bitcoin jumped above the $1600.00 mark for the 4th time since the beginning of May.
The digital currency was trading mostly under $1550 over the weekend, but a photo posted on various social media sites of newly elected French President Emmanuel Macron holding a Ledger Blue - a device for managing various digital currencies, manufactured by Paris-based Ledger - sparked a rally on Sunday evening.
The French President holding a Ledger Blue, showing his love for Bitcoin from Bitcoin
Although the photograph was taken in March of last year, according to
CCN news, at an event sponsored by Cap Digital - a French non-profit organization focused on developing the digital/fintech industry in France - its popularity on sites like Reddit, where it received more than 1500 upvotes over the past 24h, had a sizable impact on
Bitcoin’s price.
By 5:15 p.m. EDT on Monday, the BTC/USD rate on Luxembourg-based exchange Bitstamp had risen from $1525 to a new all-time high of $1642.00! While on Hong Kong-based exchange Bitfinex, the world’s most valuable cryptocurrency was trading as high as $1715.00 on Monday afternoon.
President Macron has not made any direct statements that endorse or approving any digital currency in the past, but he has previously shown interest towards this rapidly-growing industry.
In an interview with French news outlet
Le Figaro in March of this year, Macron explained how blockchain technology could be applied in the French securities markets.
While France’s new president has yet to reveal his views on cryptocurrencies, and how they fit within existing financial regulations, the election of Emmanuel Macron is widely viewed within the digital currency community as a big net positive for the French fintech sector.
National Front party leader Marine Le Pen, who lost the election by getting only 33.9 percent of the French vote, has a much more hostile stance towards cryptocurrencies,
“The National Front, well anchored in the real economy, recalls that a currency is a national public good entrusted to the sovereign people. Therefore, within the framework of the application of its model of economic patriotism, it will prevent the use of crypto-currencies, such as the Bitcoin in France.,” said Le Pen in a
press release, released on May 26, 2016.
Graphic by Bitcoin payment solutions provider BitwalaFrench flag photo by
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