Cryptocurrencies

Bitcoin Continues to Surge, Nearing All-Time High

In 2017, Bitcoin enjoyed a famed run that saw the cryptocurrency’s value climb to nearly $20,000 per coin before plummeting back down to earth. Now, nearly three years later, the asset is making another run at that record.

Since October 1st, the price of Bitcoin has nearly doubled, going from around $10,500 to as high as $19,400 in recent days. However, at press time, the value had receded some to sit just below the $19,000 mark. According to Marketwatch, BTC’s all-time record is $19,783 set back in December of 2017.

Bitcoin also isn’t the only cryptocurrency currently surging. Over the past 30 days, Ether has climbed from $412 to over $600. Meanwhile, XRP has spiked from 24¢ to as high as 79¢ during the same period.

The rising values come as more mainstream brands are embracing cryptocurrencies. Among them, PayPal announced last month that it would begin allowing users to buy, sell, hold, and pay with cryptocurrencies on their platform. This feature went live on November 12th. Announcing the new capabilities, PayPal president and CEO Dan Schulman reflected on the future of crypto (as well his companies potential role in the revolution), stating, “The shift to digital forms of currencies is inevitable, bringing with it clear advantages in terms of financial inclusion and access; efficiency, speed and resilience of the payments system; and the ability for governments to disburse funds to citizens quickly. Our global reach, digital payments expertise, two-sided network, and rigorous security and compliance controls provide us with the opportunity, and the responsibility, to help facilitate the understanding, redemption and interoperability of these new instruments of exchange.” He continued, “We are eager to work with central banks and regulators around the world to offer our support, and to meaningfully contribute to shaping the role that digital currencies will play in the future of global finance and commerce.”

Of course, as Bitcoin does approach the $20,000 mark, it may face headwinds from bears. Furthermore, should it fail to break through the $20k barrier, prices could once again begin to fade. However, it seems unlikely that the drop would be nearly as dramatic as it was back in 2017. On the other hand, the asset’s ability to top $20,000 could lead to an even stronger bull rally.

While Bitcoin’s immediate future is as uncertain as ever, there’s plenty of reasons to believe that the cryptocurrency does have a real shot at breaking its previous record. Additionally, while it may be tempting to compare this latest run to three years ago, the fact is that the asset has matured a great deal since then. Still, we’ll have to wait and see if $20,000 or higher is in the cards this time around.

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