Harris wins debate with Trump, sending stocks and bitcoin lower

The first debate between the two frontrunners in the US presidential election, Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump, ended with the current Vice President winning. This caused a dip in the stock market and the price of bitcoin (BTC).

According to post-debate comments across the internet, Harris baited Trump into a 90-minute debate on her terms, forcing the Republican to become defensive. Topics discussed ranged from abortion to Ukraine and Afghanistan. However, the crypto market was not mentioned.

Trump has become a vocal supporter of the crypto industry this year, while Harris has yet to announce her official stance on this topic, despite Democrats seemingly attempting to repair relationships with the sector.

Harris’s stronger performance sent the price of BTC lower, as her chances of winning now appear stronger. At the time of writing, according to the largest prediction market, Polymarket, Harris’s chances of winning increased by four percentage points after the debate. Both candidates are currently tied, with each holding a 49% chance of winning.

Meanwhile, in national polls, Harris leads Trump by 2.7%, according to data from FiveThirtyEight.

This week, analysts at the wealth management company Bernstein estimated that if Harris wins the election in November, BTC might drop to the $30,000-$40,000 range, while a Trump victory could push the price toward $80,000-$90,000. At the time of writing, BTC is trading at $56,620, down 1% for the day and unchanged for the week. The price has more than doubled in a year. Stocks have also corrected lower this morning (UTC), as Trump is considered a better candidate for risk assets.

Commenting on the debate, Alex Kruger, a popular BTC and crypto trader and economist, said in a post on X, that while Harris was “cool and in control” this time, the debate is still too far from election day to have a significant impact.

For now, no other head-to-head debate between the candidates has been scheduled, but both campaigns have expressed interest in meeting again before the election on November 5th.