Good morning! The big news Monday was Trump’s announcement for JD Vance, the author of “Hillbilly Elegy,” to join his ticket as VP.

Markets have continued to ride the “Trump trade” since Saturday’s assassination attempt on the presidential frontrunner.

Stocks are hitting fresh records to start the week — and that enthusiasm is spreading well beyond equities.

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VP Vance juices crypto

Crypto has been hot all year, but momentum from Washington to Wall Street is accelerating the boom.

The global market cap of all cryptocurrencies hovers at $2.46 trillion, according to data from CoinGecko.

That’s ballooned by about 95% from this time last year.

Yet in the days since a gunman attempted to assassinate Donald Trump in Pennsylvania, there’s been nearly a 5% spike. 

Bitcoin, the largest crypto, has surged nearly 10% over the last three days to hit its highest mark in two weeks. 

Ether, the second-largest token, has rallied over 9% in the same stretch, though it’s benefitted extra from speculation of regulatory approval for an ether ETF.

There are a few things working in crypto’s favor here. 

First, politics have provided a tailwind.

Prediction markets now give Trump a 70% chance of victory, up from 59% before the shooting, per Polymarket.

Markets broadly view Trump as the pro-crypto presidential candidate compared to Joe Biden, which helps explain the rally that kicked off this weekend. 

Trump cemented that token-friendly reputation Monday in selecting JD Vance, also pro-crypto, as his running mate.

It was only a few weeks ago that Vance — who is said to own more than six-figures worth of bitcoin — was circulating draft legislation to revamp US regulations of digital assets, as Politico reported.

Wall Street’s most influential figures are also contributing to the rally.

In a Monday interview with CNBC, BlackRock CEO Larry Fink praised bitcoin as a “legitimate financial instrument.”

“As you know I was a skeptic,” Fink said. “I studied it, learned about it, and came away saying, okay, my opinion five years ago was wrong.” 

Meanwhile, Jerome Powell reiterated Monday that inflation seems to be moving in the right direction.

Though he didn’t comment specifically on bitcoin, he mentioned the Fed likely won’t wait until inflation falls to 2% before cutting rates. 

Doing so, he explained, could risk the central bank being too late on policy. 

Remember, markets see easing Fed policy as bullish for risk-assets across the board. 

Last week, digital asset investment products saw $1.44 billion worth of inflows, according to CoinShares data.

Buyers have piled into these funds and investments at the highest rate ever, with year-to-date inflows nearly on track to more than double those seen in the frothy 2021. 

That data doesn’t include the billions in trading volume for high-risk meme coins, many of which have names related to political figures, such as the tokens MAGA and Jeo Boden.

“Compared to 2021 — which represented the peak of the last bull market — flows are far more impressive (clearly helped by spot ETFs),” Tom Couture, Fundstrat’s VP of digital asset strategy, wrote in a note Monday.

“2021 saw full-year flows of $10.6 billion, while this year’s totals are on pace for over $30 billion.”

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*At a glance:

Elsewhere:

📈Apple stock hits a new high. The tech giant has added around $300 billion in market value since it debuted its AI plans, and Morgan Stanley analysts see upside ahead. The bank’s team raised their price target by $57 to $273 a share. (The Street)

🏦 Jerome Powell sees cuts ahead. The Fed chief declined to specify when a rate cut would happen, sticking to his stance that decisions are made meeting by meeting. Still, he says last week’s CPI data does help boost his confidence that inflation is moving in the right direction. He also maintained that he plans to serve out his full term until 2026. (Bloomberg)

📊Trump Media stock gained 31%. On Monday, more than 76 million shares changed hands, ten times the company’s 30-day average. Trump Media is the parent company to Donald Trump’s social platform of choice, Truth Social. At the end of the first quarter, Trump Media posted a net loss of $327.6 million, and total revenue of $770,500. (CNBC)

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