The price of bitcoin rose more than twenty-fold in 2017, generating huge amounts of interest in the cryptocurrency.
After peaking at close to $20,000 in December, bitcoin's value fell to below $10,000 within a matter of weeks. This precipitated a market-wide crash that saw the price of ethereum, ripple and other leading cryptocurrencies tumble.
More recently, bitcoin has shown signs of recovery but its price remains volatile.
Its price is expected to continue to fluctuate unpredictably, and this live blog will be regularly updated with the latest news and significant changes.
information source; The Independent