Bitcoin dips below $90,000 on Trump's news of $100 billion chip plant investment

The price of Bitcoin, the world’s largest cryptocurrency, has dropped to around $90,285 in anticipation of a $100 billion investment from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), the globe’s biggest contract chipmaker, in U.S. semiconductor chip plants.

“We’re pleased to have an opportunity to meet with the President and look forward to discussing our shared vision for innovation and growth in the semiconductor industry, as well as exploring ways to bolster the technology sector along with our customers,” TSMC announced ahead of the official announcement.

To dissuade firms from building chips overseas, Trump last month mulled a 25% import tax on semiconductor chips manufactured abroad: “We have to have chips made in this country,” Trump said. “Right now, everything is made in Taiwan, practically, almost all of it, a little bit in South Korea, but everything — almost all of it is made in Taiwan. And we want it to be made —we want those companies to come to our country.”

Meanwhile, the price of Ether, the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency, fell 8% to $2,286 on Monday, according to CoinMarketCap.

Over the weekend, Trump reignited interest in slumping crypto markets by announcing a U.S. crypto reserve that would include Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, SOL, and ADA. Trump also took to TruthSocial social media platform to contrast his support for the digitalasset industry with that of his predecessor, former president Joe Biden: “A U.S. crypto reserve will elevate this critical industry after years of corrupt attacks by the Biden administration,” Trump said.

Voices in the crypto industry weighed in: “This statement fueled bullish sentiment, driving significant price gains across the crypto market,” said James Toledano, COO at Unity Wallet.

“The surge, led by specific assets mentioned in Trump’s two posts — BTC, ETH, XRP, SOL, and ADA, highlights the dominant role of sentiment over traditional economic drivers in crypto price movements," Toledano added. "It is no coincidence therefore that the assets specifically mentioned surged the most.”

“The announcement of the strategic crypto reserve is the catalyst that the crypto market has been waiting for to kick-start the next leg of the bull rally,” said Chris Chung, founder of Solana swap platform Titan. “What’s clear is that the U.S. president is now the driving force for crypto market movements, and he is certainly playing favorites with crypto tokens.”