Cryptocurrency Bitcoin has soared above $8,000 for the first time, and is now trading higher than $8,200.
The rise marks a rapid recovery for the blockchain-based currency, which had dropped to as low as $5,555 just over a week ago. At the time of writing it was up 2.7 per cent at $8,255.
The new all-time high was set after payment app Square, the brainchild of Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey, said it was now allowing some customers to buy and sell Bitcoin on its Cash app.
Derivatives marketplace CME Group also released more details yesterday of its upcoming Bitcoin futures, which are expected to begin trading in December.
But trading volumes of Bitcoin have declined over the last few days, suggesting investors might be less keen to put money into the cryptocurrency at such a high valuation.
The 800 per cent rise in Bitcoin’s value since the beginning of this year has led to warnings of a bubble and scepticism from financial services leaders. Most notably, JPMorgan Chase boss Jamie Dimon has called cryptocurrencies a "fraud" and warned that government crackdowns are imminent.
French bank BNP Paribas added to the growing number of voices today, saying that the rise of cryptocurrencies could undermine monetary policy and that the lack of central control could be risky.
Bitcoin remains the highest valued cryptocurrency, but others have also made gains. Ethereum was up more than two per cent to $364, an 11-week high.
Meanwhile Bitcoin Cash, the result of a fork in Bitcoin, was up one per cent at $1,183, keeping steady above $1,000 following a blip last Thursday when it fell to just over $900.
courtesy: http://www.cityam.com