WHAT ABOUT BUYING A US$6,2M BANANA?

NEW YORK. – Not long after buying and publicly consuming a US$6.2m banana as part of an artworld stunt, Chinese crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun made another eye-catching purchase, investing US$30m into a cryptocurrency firm called World Liberty Financial.

The company had foundered since its October launch, investors seemingly leery of its prospects and its terms.

But it boasted a potentially enticing feature: the chance to do business with a firm partnering with and promoted by none other than Donald Trump.

Mr Sun’s investment tipped the company over the threshold that allowed the President-elect to begin profiting from the venture.

Trump and his family are now in the position to collect roughly US$20m – and potentially far more.

Mr Sun, who is currently fighting fraud charges in the US related to his own crypto business, did not respond to questions about what prompted his interest in the tokens, which cannot be traded.

The price of Bitcoin has for the first time broken past the US$100,000 mark, hitting a new record high.

The US$100,000 milestone prompted celebrations from cryptocurrency fans around the world.

Bitcoin’s wildly fluctuating value has always attracted interest, with its backers reacting with delight when it has passed previous price thresholds – and defiance during its slumps.

But this particular landmark has been especially keenly anticipated.

For weeks charts, memes and predictions have swirled around social media about when the price would hit the figure thought to be one of the holy grails of the crypto world.

Millions of viewers even tuned in to online watch parties as the price hovered close to US$100k.

The value of a single bitcoin is one of the barometers of optimism in the cryptocurrency industry which is now estimated to be worth US$3.3tn, according to analysis firm Coin Market Cap.