Bitcoin is trading at all-time highs, surging beyond £93,000 for the first time.

The world’s biggest cryptocurrency has doubled in value over the past 12 months – buoyed by Donald Trump’s return to the White House.

However, its 10% surge over the past week is down to one specific factor: the US government shutdown.

Experts have told Sky News that the drama unfolding in Washington is undermining trust in the dollar – and pushing investors to alternatives.

Bitwise senior associate Max Shannon said stubbornly high inflation, which erodes spending power, is another factor.

Some countries are also increasing their monetary supply – watering down the value of cash in circulation – with government borrowing on the rise.

That’s led to what’s known as a “debasement trade”, where investors pile their cash into so-called “hard” assets like Bitcoin and gold instead.

Bitcoin has a fixed supply, meaning no more than 21 million will ever exist. Almost 95% of them are already in circulation, with a small number of coins entering the market every day.

Enthusiasts argue this creates a form of scarcity that pushes prices up, as demand for BTC is considerably higher than supply.

The latest figures from the Financial Conduct Authority suggest about seven million people in the UK have invested in cryptocurrencies. A single coin can be broken up into 100 million pieces, meaning many have a tiny chunk of Bitcoin in their portfolios.

But much of the current enthusiasm for Bitcoin isn’t coming from everyday investors – instead, it’s institutions leading the charge.

Deep-pocketed companies and individuals are buying into exchange-traded funds (ETFs) on Wall Street that track Bitcoin’s value – allowing them to gain indirect exposure to BTC’s price rises without owning it directly. A staggering $3.5bn (£2.6bn) flowed into these products last week.

Samson Mow is the chief executive of JAN3, a company that promotes Bitcoin adoption. He played a role in El Salvador becoming the first country in the world to adopt this cryptocurrency as legal tender.

While that experiment didn’t achieve widespread success, the Central American nation continues to invest in BTC – with estimated profits of more than £350m as a result.

When asked why Bitcoin has hit all-time highs, Mow told Sky News: “Bitcoin has been a ball pushed underwater for months – this move up was inevitable. Raw demand has simply caught up with the incredibly limited supply.”

He pointed to how 6.7% of Bitcoin’s supply is now tied up in ETFs – with Strategy, a company that has the goal of accruing as much BTC as possible, owning a further 3%. This means there’s less to go around overall, in what Mow describes as “the beginning of a massive supply shock”.

The entrepreneur believes a single Bitcoin will one day be worth $500,000 (£371,000), meaning the cryptocurrency’s total market capitalisation would surge to $10trn (£7.4trn). That’s more than double what Nvidia’s currently worth as the world’s most valuable company, and would make BTC the second-largest asset after gold.

Mow shrugged off any suggestion Bitcoin’s dramatic price rises aren’t sustainable – and insists the only thing that’s “definitely not sustainable” is BTC’s value remaining as low as it is.

“There are only 21 million BTC. Most corporations, billionaires, and even millionaires still have no exposure to Bitcoin. Nation-states have yet to seriously begin accumulation too, but many that we’re engaged with are very interested and are looking to move quickly,” he said.

Of course, not everyone shares his enthusiasm. Critics argue Bitcoin lacks intrinsic value, with some claiming it’s “worse than a Ponzi scheme”.

David Gerard, a journalist who’s deeply sceptical of the crypto industry, told Sky News that Bitcoin suffers from thin trading volumes – resulting in “unfeasibly volatile prices” and an “easily manipulated market”.

“Bitcoin trading is overwhelmingly in unregulated offshore exchanges, so Bitcoin is not a well-functioning market in the sense of, say, stocks,” he said. “If investors treat Bitcoin as a well-regulated market, they will get burned. ETFs are regulated instruments, the way Bitcoin’s price is set is not.”

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Gerard has railed against BTC for years, and wrote a book condemning the sector in July 2017. But in the eight years since it was published, Bitcoin’s price has risen by more than 5,200%. Has this changed his views?

“Everything that’s structurally wrong with Bitcoin is still wrong with Bitcoin,” he said. “Anyone who sees the big number and thinks ‘time to get in’ is the sucker the big boys are making their money from.

“You can definitely make money in Bitcoin! But statistically, you’re much more likely to be the sucker.”

Some banks, including Morgan Stanley, now encourage their clients to allocate 2% to 4% of their portfolios into crypto – but doing so when prices are so high is risky.

While it’s possible Bitcoin could keep on rising, this is an asset also known for punishing pullbacks that have seen investors, including people right here in the UK, lose a lot of money.

This tends to happen every four years. BTC surged to a record price of $20,000 in December 2017, but plunged by more than 80% a year later – falling below $4,000.

Another all-time high of $69,000 then followed in November 2021 – but 12 months on, a spectacular crash dragged it back down to $17,000, a 75% drop.

Four years on in October 2025, here we are again: BTC has never been higher. History doesn’t always repeat itself – but if past performance is a guide, 2026 could prove challenging.

The production shutdown at cyber attack-hit Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has entered its sixth week, a week after it had raised hopes of a phased restart “in the coming days”.

The company reiterated a statement released last Monday when approached by Sky News for an update on its recovery efforts.

It also declined to comment on a report by The Times that it was considering a loan scheme, worth up to £500m, to help protect its supply chain from the financial turmoil caused by the hacking.

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JLR’s manufacturing operations have been at a standstill since the attack in late August but Sky News understands that testing to make progress on a controlled resumption is continuing.

The Wolverhampton engine plant could be the first to stutter back to life.

A £1.5bn loan guarantee offered by the government to the company is understood to have not been taken up, given that the carmaker has met its commitments to suppliers that it deals with.

Those further down the chain however, complain they are suffering financially and from uncertainty over when deliveries can resume.

The supply chain employs up to 200,000 people directly and indirectly.

Industry bodies say job losses are growing and the risk of smaller businesses folding has increased as cash inflows remain on hold and total outflows grow.

The main concern for such companies is that those which supply JLR indirectly can access some relief – either from JLR or in the form of an improved government scheme that can be tapped by employers directly.

It could be that without financial aid, JLR’s future production recovery risks damage from suppliers going out of business.

The government had hoped that JLR would take out a loan with commercial banks under the proposals for state support, saying that the loan guarantee offer also amounted to support for the supply chain.

Since that offer was made, the company is widely reported to have agreed a separate £2bn funding facility to maintain its funding buffers.

The loss of production alone is costing JLR £5m a day.

The company said in its statement, which mirrored last Monday’s update: “As the controlled, phased restart of our operations continues, we are taking further steps towards our recovery and the return to manufacture of our world-class vehicles.

“We have informed colleagues, retailers and suppliers that some sections of our manufacturing operations will resume in the coming days.

“We continue to work around the clock alongside cybersecurity specialists, the UK government’s NCSC [National Cyber Security Centre] and law enforcement to ensure our restart is done in a safe and secure manner.

“We would like to thank everyone connected with JLR for their continued patience, understanding and support. We know there is much more to do but the foundational work of our recovery is firmly under way, and we will continue to provide updates as we progress.”

A shake-up to the house-buying system which could cut a month off the time it takes – and slash around £700 from the moving bill – is on the table.

Changes could include requiring property sellers and estate agents to provide more information when a home is listed for sale, reducing the need for buyers to carry out searches and surveys.

Binding contracts could also be introduced at an earlier stage, reducing the risk of a chain collapsing and guzumping – when someone makes a higher offer for a house than someone whose offer has already been accepted by the seller.

The proposals could also deliver clearer information to consumers about estate agents and conveyancers, including their track record and expertise, along with new mandatory qualifications and a code of practice to drive up standards.

Housing Secretary Steve Reed said the proposals, which are the subject of a consultation, would help make “a simple dream, a simple reality”.

The government says it will set out a full roadmap in the new year after consulting on its proposals.

Mr Reed said: “Buying a home should be a dream, not a nightmare.

“Our reforms will fix the broken system so hardworking people can focus on the next chapter of their lives.”

Officials believe the proposed package of reforms could cut around a month off the time it takes to buy a new home and save first-time buyers an average of £710.

People selling a home could face increased costs of around £310 due to the inclusion of upfront assessments and surveys.

Those in the middle of a chain would potentially gain a net saving of £400 as a result of the increased costs from selling being outweighed by lower buying expenses.

Wider use of online processes, including digital ID, could help make transactions smoother, the government argued, pointing to the Finnish digital real estate system which can see the process completed in around two weeks.

The consultation also draws on other jurisdictions, including the Scottish system where there is more upfront information and earlier binding contracts.

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Meanwhile, the Conservatives have pledged to give young people a £5,000 national insurance rebate to help with the cost of their first home when they get their first full-time job as part of their plans to “reward work”, The Times reports.

The proposals for a “first-job bonus” – which would divert national insurance contributions into a long-term savings account – are said to be announced by shadow chancellor Sir Mel Stride on Monday.

The bonus could benefit 600,000 people a year and amount to £10,000 for a working couple, with the Tories saying the £2.8bn cost would be funded by cutting government spending, according to the newspaper.

‘Process the same as for our grandparents’

The government’s planned shake-up was welcomed by property websites and lenders.

Rightmove chief executive Johan Svanstrom said: “The home-moving process involves many fragmented parts, and there’s simply too much uncertainty and costs along the way.

“Speed, connected data and stakeholder simplicity should be key goals.

“We believe it’s important to listen to agents as the experts for what practical changes will be most effective, and we look forward to working with the government on this effort to improve the buying and selling process.”

Santander’s head of homes David Morris said: “At a time when technology has changed many processes in our lives, it is incredible that the process of buying a home – an activity that is a cornerstone of our economy – remains much the same for today’s buyers as it did for their grandparents.”

Conservative shadow housing minister Paul Holmes said: “Whilst we welcome steps to digitise and speed up the process, this risks reinventing the last Labour government’s failed Home Information Packs – which reduced the number of homes put on sale, and duplicated costs across buyers and sellers.”