Elon Musk is laying the groundwork for the next round of Bitcoin and crypto markets: not by pulling strings with a single tweet, but by connecting discussions, market movements, and trading entries.

Written by: Billy Bambrough, Forbes

Translated by: AididiaoJP, Foresight News

Elon Musk has not shouted out as frequently as he did in 2021, but he has pushed X closer to the crypto market once again. This article analyzes how Musk is preparing for the next round of Bitcoin and crypto market trends: not relying on a single tweet to manipulate prices, but integrating discussions, market trends, and trading entries.

On the same day, the price of Bitcoin surged to around $87,000 before slightly retreating, still at a several-month high. There is still a distance from the previous high of about $126,000 in October 2025, but for a market that had hovered between $60,000 and $80,000 for most of this year, this has been enough to boost sentiment. Dogecoin also gained strength, briefly rising back above $0.10, with a 24-hour increase of over 10%. The market sees two things combined: the price is rising, and X has turned "seeing coins" into "clicking to buy."

What X has done and not done

The change is evident in Cashtag. U.S. users who click on the $BTC, $ETH, $XRP, $SOL, $DOGE, or $TSLA, $COIN stock tags on their timeline can see larger real-time charts, related posts, and a "trade" button. Clicking it redirects to Coinbase, Kraken, Gemini, or Interactive Brokers, Moomoo. The first three exchanges handle crypto assets, while the last two brokers handle stocks and ETFs. Logging in or signing up, placing orders, and custody are all done on the partner platforms. X neither matches transactions, nor clears, nor touches customer funds; it merely serves as a discovery layer and a traffic direction layer.

Mridul Singhai, a member of the X product engineering team, stated that the goal of Cashtag is to bridge the gap between timeline information and market execution. This feature is currently only available to U.S. users, with no timetable for other markets. For a platform with daily active users in the millions, the significance of this step is not that "X has become an exchange," but that it transforms crypto discussions from mere observation into actionable activities. By early 2026, Smart Cashtag will be able to show real-time prices; it now has an order path. Information translates into action, minimizing friction by removing the need to open a browser, search for an exchange, and register.

This is distinct from X Money, which is a different line of development. X Money opened to select Premium users mid-year, offering fiat transfers, savings, and Visa card services, previously advertising an approximate 6% yield with cashback, without including crypto functionality at launch. The regulatory license is following the route of currency transfers and bank collaboration, first building a fiat base and then discussing stablecoin or crypto integration. Musk's team previously confirmed that crypto trading would be integrated through Smart Cashtag, and X itself does not function as a broker. The trading button launched in September effectively puts that statement into action. The market is still speculating whether the next step will embed Bitcoin, Dogecoin, or stablecoins into X Money, but there is currently no official timetable.

Companies and people: holding coins on the books, talking about energy

Tesla still holds about 11,509 Bitcoins, worth nearly $1 billion at current prices, with a recent increase in value of about $123 million. SpaceX disclosed holding around 18,712 Bitcoins, which once made external estimates of its holdings double, with a purchase cost of about $661 million. The two companies together hold over 30,000 Bitcoins, potentially placing them fifth globally in terms of Bitcoin holdings by publicly listed companies. Musk has personally stated that he holds Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Dogecoin, though the specific amounts have never been publicized. The market views him as a switch for crypto sentiment, focusing on his influence rather than the amount of coins in his pocket.

In his recent public statements, his focus has shifted from "whether to buy" to "what money is." He wrote that energy is the true currency; fiat money can be printed, while energy cannot be faked; Bitcoin is built on energy. He also told The Economist that if AI and robotics push supply to extremes over the next decade, the concept of money may lose its importance. The Bitcoin community interprets this as him not stepping away from the narrative but rather discussing it at a more fundamental level—computational power, electricity, and irrefutable settlements.

This rhetoric contrasts sharply with 2021. At that time, Tesla had briefly accepted Bitcoin payments, only to halt due to mining energy consumption; the company then sold off most of its holdings, leaving the current batch. Musk shifted towards Dogecoin and memes, briefly engaged with policy during the Trump period, and then distanced himself again. The price no longer jumps at his mention, but once X modifies its products, the market will still reassess his valuation.

Rising prices do not mean the cycle has been confirmed

In mid-September, Bitcoin was still around $75,500, rising over 15% in a few days, peaking at about $87,300 before retreating to around $85,000 to $86,000. Spot volumes have significantly increased. On-chain data platform Glassnode noted that the Bitcoin MVRV ratio has re-established itself above the 365-day moving average, a momentum signal that previously appeared before the bull markets of 2019 and 2023. Some analyses see crossing above the 365-day moving average as a "bull market signal," with the next resistance level seen at $88,000 to $90,000. Others caution that earlier short squeezes have significantly amplified the price increase—more than $648 million in short positions being forcibly liquidated, creating a "breakout—liquidation—re-breakout" self-reinforcing cycle, suggesting that chasing high leverage may not be wise, and first observing if it can hold above $82,000 is prudent.

The total market value of the crypto market is back near $3 trillion, with Bitcoin accounting for about 59%. These figures indicate that the rebound has volume but do not prove that the four-year cycle has flipped.

The macro narrative remains an old theme: U.S. debt expansion, changes in the monetary environment, gold leading the way, and so-called devaluation trades returning to digital assets. Kevin O'Leary and others have proposed a very high upper limit for the next round, suggesting that Bitcoin may achieve a 1% to 3% allocation in institutional alternative asset allocations, which would imply a price range of $253,000 to $760,000, and if the upper limit is reached, a market cap of $15 trillion. He also noted that for Bitcoin to reach $1 million, the industry must first address external concerns about quantum computing potentially breaking crypto standards. Predictions themselves are highly volatile and are best considered as sentiment coordinates.

For traders, the facts that can currently be verified are not complicated. First, X has connected crypto discussions to licensed exchanges, trialing first in the U.S. Second, the two core companies within Musk's system remain large corporate holders of coins, with publicly accessible positions. Third, payment products first proceed with fiat, while crypto integration is listed as a plan, rather than a feature that has already been launched. Fourth, coin prices have rebounded from lows earlier in the year to several-month highs, yet still have a significant distance from previous highs.

Opening the gateway is not a bull market starter's pistol, and posting less does not equate to exiting the market. If the next round truly arrives, the market will look back at this step: it is not about what Musk shouted again, but whether, when hundreds of millions of people see $BTC, buying coins is simply a matter of a single click.