Bitcoin, the original cryptocurrency has been seeing a surge recently, and now it has hit an all new high at $13,000(RM 53,105) per Bitcoin and its rapid rise seems to be causing some concern in the financial communities. This latest rise in value came just after it has risen yet again by $1,000 in 24 hours. Bitcoin had been out of the limelight during the last few months of 2016, but during the start of 2017, a sudden rise in value has placed it back into the limelight prompting many to buy mid to high-end GPU’s in order to get in on the hype. Some critics have said that the current rise is similar to that of the dot-com boom, whereby the bubble will burst eventually, while others are saying the rise in value is because of its transition into the mainstream finance channels.
Last week, The U.S had approved Bitcoin to be regulated via two exchanges which are the CBOE Global Markets and CME Group, which are beginning to deal in Bitcoin-related contracts. Cambridge Global Payments director of global product and market strategy Karl Schamotta said that move was behind the latest rally: “The perception in households around the world that the CME and the CBOE are providing legitimacy to bitcoin is really what is driving the massive rally here.”
What is Bitcoin?
Bitcoin is a form of digital currency that only exists online and has no physical representations. It is not created and/or printed by banks or government institutions, and many individuals are using Bitcoin as a form of high risk, high reward financial investment.