Bitcoin Hits Record Trading Volume, Surge Driven by Retail Demand

Bitcoin reached a new all-time high of $89,956 on November 12, with its trading volume soaring to a record $145 billion in just 24 hours, according to a report from Matrixport. This surge in volume marks a significant increase of about 50% over previous highs observed in August and March of this year. The volume continued to climb throughout the day, briefly surpassing $170 billion, according to Coingecko data.

Retail Demand Drives Bitcoin’s Rally

Matrixport analysts attribute the massive volume spike primarily to growing retail investor interest. This surge has been closely tied to the U.S. presidential election, where Donald Trump emerged victorious. Trump’s crypto-friendly stance, including his promises to make the U.S. the “crypto capital of the planet,” create a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, and remove SEC Chair Gary Gensler, has been widely perceived by the crypto community as a significant bullish catalyst.

In addition to the election results, Google searches for Bitcoin have surged, hitting their highest level in five years, with a 78% increase in search activity, further reflecting the growing public interest in Bitcoin.

Spot Bitcoin ETFs See Major Uptick

The increased enthusiasm also contributed to a surge in spot Bitcoin ETFs, which saw over $4.2 billion in inflows following Trump’s win. This has helped push Bitcoin to its latest all-time high, further fueling the rally.

According to Matrixport’s analysis, historical trends suggest that growing retail trading activity often persists for several weeks or even months during market upswings. As such, analysts believe Bitcoin’s bullish momentum could continue in the coming weeks.

Bitcoin’s Correction and Price Targets

At the time of writing, Bitcoin had slightly corrected, trading 2.61% below its all-time high, as the cryptocurrency underwent a typical pullback following its massive rally.

Despite the correction, Bitcoin proponents like Michael Saylor, Arthur Hayes, and other members of the crypto community remain optimistic, with some projecting $100,000 and beyond. Bernstein analysts have set a long-term price target of $200,000, driven by the anticipated crypto-friendly regulatory environment under Trump and hopes for a pro-crypto SEC.

Crypto traders on platforms like X are also eyeing a potential bullish pennant pattern on Bitcoin’s four-hour chart, with some speculating a near-term price target of $103,000.

Meanwhile, Standard Chartered forecasts that Bitcoin could reach $125,000 by January 2025. However, Rekt Capital, a well-known pseudo-anonymous analyst, expects further price correction before Bitcoin makes its next leg up. According to Rekt Capital, Bitcoin has reached only 50% of its potential gains for this bull cycle, with the peak likely to occur sometime around October 2025.