Bitcoin is approaching USD 50,000, wider adoption fuels a record rally

Feb. 14 (Reuters) – Bitcoin hit a new all-time high, approaching $ 50,000 on Sunday, building on its record rally as Wall Street and Main Street increasingly use the largest cryptocurrency in the world.

Bitcoin was at $ 48,800 on Sunday morning, up 3.2%. It traded as high as $ 49,714 earlier in the day. The cryptocurrency is up about 70% so far.

After long shunned by traditional financial companies, bitcoin and other virtual currencies seem to be increasingly entering the mainstream as a means of asset and routine payments.

BNY Mellon said last week that it was forming a new unit to help customers hold, transfer and spend digital assets just days after Elon Musk’s Tesla revealed it had purchased $ 1.5 billion worth of cryptocurrency and would soon accept it as a form of payment for its cars. .

On Friday, Canada’s Ontario Securities Commission approved the launch of Purpose Bitcoin ETF, Toronto-based asset management firm Purpose Investments Inc said in a statement. The OSC confirmed it had approved the launch of the world’s first bitcoin exchange-traded fund, in a separate statement to Reuters.

Miami Mayor Francis Suarez also said on Friday that the Florida city wants to embrace bitcoin in its operations, a move that could deliver dividends in terms of attracting tech companies.

In January, BlackRock Inc, the world’s largest asset manager, added bitcoin as an eligible investment to two funds.

Credit card giant Mastercard’s plans to provide support for some cryptocurrencies have also spurred bitcoin’s ambitions towards mainstream financing, although many banks are reluctant to go along with it.

Cryptocurrency miner Riot Blockchain rose 14% Friday, hitting its all-time high in more than 10 years with a weekly profit of 110%, the largest weekly profit since 2017. Digital asset tech company Marathon Patent Group showed weekly profit of over 70 %.